Court Jails Two For Attempting To Hack Into Bank’s System

An Ikeja High Court on Thursday sentenced two men, James Ettete and Jude Ekenne, to two years imprisonment each, for attempting to steal N480,000 from Skye Bank Plc.

Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye handed the sentences to Etette, 40, and Ekenne, 54; after they pleaded guilty to the offences following their re-arraignment.

The judge convicted them of the six-count charge of conspiracy, stealing, forgery and uttering, preferred against them .

Ipaye consequently sentenced them to two years imprisonment on each of the counts.

She said the sentences are to run concurrently beginning from Nov.13,2013 when they were first arrested and detained for the offences.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the convicts were earlier arraigned in December 2013 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)..

However, in the course of the trial, they elected to change their pleas to a guilty plea.

Reviewing the facts of the case, the EFCC counsel, Mr Ben Ubi, said the convicts conspired to commit the offences on Sept.15, 2013 in Lagos.

He said: “The EFCC received a petition from officials of Skye Bank informing the commission of the activities of a syndicate made up of the convicts and their cohorts (now at large).

“The syndicate was trying to use insider connections in the bank to hack into its computer system in order to fraudulently transfer money from the bank’s vault.”

Ubi said following the tip off, a trap was laid for the convicts and they were arrested, while one Kunle escaped.

“In their statements, they confessed to their complicity in the crimes and told the EFCC that the syndicate was spread across the country.

“During a search on their residence, several incriminating documents were recovered and they were consequently charged to court,” he added.

According to him, their offences contravene Section 363(1), 404 and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2011. (NAN)