A Lagos Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced a 39-year-old driver with the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Christopher Ekene Ofielu, to 18 months imprisonment for stealing ₦6.9 million from HabariPay Ltd.
Justice Rahman Oshodi handed down the sentence on Monday, October 20, 2025, after Ofielu pleaded guilty to a three-count charge of conspiracy, stealing, and possession of stolen funds brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
According to the EFCC, Ofielu exploited a system glitch in October 2023 to transfer ₦6,995,944 from a HabariPay account into his personal Access Bank account.
One of the counts reads:
“That you, Christopher Ekene Ofielu, on or about October 2023, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, used your HabariPay Squad account created for criminal activity and transferred the sum of ₦6,995,944 into your Access Bank account, property of HabariPay Ltd.”
The convict pleaded guilty to the charges. Following his plea, EFCC counsel, Abubakar Dambuwa, called Adams Adze, an investigator with the commission, to review the facts of the case.
Adze told the court that the EFCC acted on a petition dated September 26, 2023, submitted by HabariPay Ltd., which reported unauthorized fund transfers traced to Ofielu.
“The defendant took advantage of a system glitch to carry out the illegal withdrawal,” Adze said.
The prosecution further informed the court that the defendant had entered into a plea bargain agreement with the EFCC.
While pleading for leniency, defence counsel, Mercy Akhabue, described her client as remorseful and a first-time offender, urging the court to temper justice with mercy.
In his ruling, Justice Oshodi convicted Ofielu of stealing and sentenced him to 18 months imprisonment, effective from October 20, 2025. He, however, gave him an option of a ₦1.5 million fine, on the condition that he must refund the full stolen amount of ₦6,995,944 to HabariPay Ltd. within seven days.
Failure to make restitution, the judge ruled, would automatically trigger the prison term.
Justice Oshodi also ordered the restoration of the convict’s EcoBank salary account and directed that his biometric data be entered into the Lagos State offenders’ register.
Ofielu was remanded in the EFCC’s custody pending the completion of restitution and other legal formalities.
The EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, confirmed the conviction in a statement released on October 25, 2025, describing it as another victory in the commission’s fight against economic crimes and financial misconduct.
