Two top executives of SunTrust Bank Ltd., Managing Director Halima Buba and Executive Director Innocent Mbagwu, were brought before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations involving $12 million in suspected money laundering.
Appearing before Justice Emeka Nwite, the pair faced a six-count charge tied to financial transactions allegedly conducted in breach of Nigeria’s Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
One of the charges, as detailed by the EFCC, alleges that on March 10, 2025, Buba and Mbagwu “aided Femi Gbamgboye to make a cash payment of the sum of Three Million United States Dollars ($3,000,000) to Suleiman Muhammed Chiroma and associates without going through a financial institution” — an act that violates the provisions of the anti-money laundering law.
Another count accuses both defendants of conspiring, just three days later in Lagos, “to make a cash payment of Three Million United States Dollars ($3,000,000) to Mukhtar Miko, an associate of Suleiman Muhammed Chiroma, without passing the funds through any financial institution.”
Both Buba and Mbagwu entered not guilty pleas to all charges when they were read in court.
Lead prosecution counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Rotimi Oyedepo, declared the EFCC’s preparedness to begin the trial without delay, urging the court for a fast-tracked hearing. However, the defence team, led by SAN J.J. Usman, pushed for bail, citing already filed applications dated May 27, 2025.
Oyedepo, in opposing the bail request, described the applications as “incompetent” since, according to him, they were submitted while the accused were neither in custody nor had appeared in court. He maintained that the applications were made “from the comfort of their homes or offices,” contrary to what the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) permits.
Nonetheless, Justice Nwite overruled the objection and granted each defendant bail in the sum of ₦100 million, along with one surety apiece in the same amount. The sureties, the judge ruled, must own verifiable landed property in Abuja.
The court further directed that the sureties submit:
Title documents for the property
Their residential details for verification
International passports
Two recent passport-sized photos
Pending the fulfilment of these bail conditions, the judge ordered that both Buba and Mbagwu be remanded in a correctional facility.
The case was adjourned to July 17 and 18 for continuation of trial.
