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Female banker defrauds bank N48 million to establish church

June 23, 2007


   

When Bola Jolayemi picked appointment with the First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Matori, Lagos, the authority had no cause to doubt her integrity thus they entrusted her with the duty of collecting and counting money at the counter.

In fact, the self-confessed born again Christian went about her duties diligently without attracting suspicion from the management. Perhaps, the management's confidence in her was boosted by the fact that she used to preach the gospel to her colleagues every time she resumed work.

However, the hood was soon lifted off Jolayemi's character. Thanks to her escapade with Segun Olurin, a pastor and friend to the banker. Olurin used to visit the latter at her office to counsel her after she lost her hubby three years ago. The pastor's visits became quite frequent and consistent that Jolayemi's colleagues at work and her fellow worshippers in the church began to question their relationship.

The dividends were soon known. Jolayemi and her pastor pulled out from their place of worship and found their own church, the Field of Prayer Mission situated in Ojota, Lagos. Within a few months, their church grew rapidly that people started to wonder where the duo got the money they used in establishing what was fast blossoming into a mega church.

Then, the bubble burst. Jolayemi's boss and manager of the bank at which she worked went for Hajj, the Islamic holy pilgrimage and a new one came on relief duties. The new bank manager innocently transferred Jolayemi from the counter and posted another staff to replace her.

One of the police officers investigating the case at the Special Fraud Unit, SFU, of the Nigeria Police Force, NPF, Lagos said that, Òwhen the new person who took over from Jolayemi resumed duty, what he saw was a glaring fraud. Jolayemi has not been posting money to the accounts of customers. Rather, she opened a special account by which she defrauded the bank of a whooping sum of N48 million.

The new bank manager reported the incident to the management who called in the police. The police went into action and picked Jolayemi who spilt the beans that it was Pastor Segun that begged her to loot the bank. And the N48 million was used in building the church. The police did not waste time as they also arrested the pastor who was detained for weeks.

A police officer who spoke on anonymity said, actually, Pastor Segun did not deny that Bola brought some money to set up the church but only owned up to collecting N7 million from Bola.
The duo granted bail after being interrogated but only Segun has been showing up while Bola is on the run.


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