By Matthew Dennis
Justice Benjamin Lawan Manji of the Adamawa State High Court has sentenced the Managing Director of Bonghe Microfinance Bank, Grace Andreas Karka, to five years imprisonment for criminal conspiracy and cheating involving ₦32 million.
Karka was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Gombe Zonal Directorate, on a two-count charge bordering on theft and misappropriation of funds belonging to Bonghe Microfinance Bank.
According to the EFCC, between August 2020 and March 2021, Karka conspired with one Prince Moses Batalu to dishonestly move ₦66.7 million from the bank’s account domiciled with First Bank Nigeria Limited, without due approval—an offence contrary to Section 61(2) of the Adamawa State Penal Code Law, 2018.
Upon arraignment on November 11, 2024, the defendant pleaded not guilty, leading to a full trial in which prosecution counsel Mubarak Tijani presented multiple witnesses and documents to prove the case.
Delivering judgment on October 17, 2025, Justice Manji held that the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt and convicted Karka on both counts. She was sentenced to five years imprisonment with an option of ₦3 million fine on each count, to run concurrently.
The court further ordered Karka to restitute ₦29,877,040 to the petitioner, being the outstanding balance of the diverted funds.
Her conviction followed an internal audit by the bank in 2021, which uncovered unauthorized transfers to a non-customer account linked to Karka and her associate. Efforts by the bank to recover the funds reportedly proved futile.
