An Ikeja Special Offences and Domestic Violence Court has sentenced a former Director in the Lagos State Ministry of Education, Olawale Faleti, to two years and five months’ imprisonment for stealing N48.9 million belonging to Access Bank Plc.
Justice Rahman Oshodi convicted the 64-year-old on five counts of stealing after finding him guilty of the charges filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In his judgment on Monday, the trial judge described Faleti’s conduct as calculated and persistent, noting that the convict repeatedly accessed and withdrew funds without lawful authority.
Justice Oshodi held that Faleti failed to show sufficient remorse or take full responsibility for his actions, stressing that offences against financial institutions pose a serious threat to economic stability.
“Banks are central to the nation’s economic life, and the confidence reposed in them must be protected.
Those who seek to undermine this trust must face stiff consequences,” the judge said.
Although the court acknowledged that Faleti was a first-time offender, it ruled that the gravity of the offence warranted a custodial sentence.
The judge, however, applied a 20 per cent reduction from the statutory maximum sentence of three years, citing partial restitution made by the convict.
Faleti was sentenced to two years and five months’ imprisonment on each of the five counts, to run concurrently.
The sentence is to take effect from January 5, 2026.
The court also ordered that Faleti’s biometric details be entered into the Lagos State Judiciary’s offenders’ database.
In addition, Justice Oshodi directed that the outstanding sum of N45.9 million—after deducting the N3 million earlier refunded—be paid to Access Bank.
The bank was ordered to formally notify the court upon full recovery of the funds.
Earlier, EFCC counsel, Ahmed Dambuwa, told the court that Faleti exploited unauthorised access to an Access Bank credit card to fraudulently withdraw the money.
He explained that while the card was designed to allow withdrawals of at least N43,000 per transaction, a system glitch during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 enabled the convict to illegally withdraw about N48 million.
According to the prosecution, Faleti converted N12.6 million between July 2 and July 10, 2020, and another N6.9 million between May 22 and July 1, 2020, among other transactions.
The offences were said to contravene Section 287(1)(a) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.