Coy seeks EFCC Chair intervention on fraudulent activities at Taj Bank
Coy seeks EFCC Chair intervention on fraudulent activities at Taj Bank
By: Femi Mustapha
The Nexus 24Agrik Commodities Limited has appealed to the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Mr Ola Olukoyede to personally intervene in probing the shades of fraudulent activities against the company by Taj Bank Limited.
The Managing Director of the Company, Mr Anthony Akhivbareme appealed yesterday while speaking to the media in Kaduna.
Mr Akhivbareme explained that the fraudulent activities carried out against his company include forgery, perjury, collusion, criminal conspiracy, and corruption by the bank and its employees.
Disturbed by the activities, which are almost putting the company at a standstill, Nexus 24Agrik Commodities Limited in a petition with file number EFCC/PET/KAD/1426/2023 dated 4th December 2023 had sought the intervention of the Kaduna Zonal Command of the anti-graft Commission but was not satisfied with the response.
Akhivbareme, while lamenting that his organization is losing in the business community because of the activities of Taj Bank Limited said “On the 30th of November, 2023, Nexus 24Agrik Commodities Limited received a court order and other court processes as a second respondent in a case between Taj Bank Limited and another company (Enonita Limited). Upon examination of the supporting documents presented by Taj Bank and its employees, we discovered evidence of fraudulent practices, forgery, and misrepresentation.
“The document suggests a business transaction between Nexus 24Agrik Commodities Limited and Enonita Limited, dated to commence from the 13th of February, 2022, a period before our company was even registered. Also, the document is not on our official letterhead, and our official letterhead carries only one contact number, which is the company’s number. The Nexus24 Agrik Commodities Limited only has one purchase order document which contains specific information, including the terms and conditions of the transaction.
“Our purchase order document is always signed and stamped by the procurement director after appropriate approval from the Managing Director has been confirmed. The fraudulent document does not align with any of our usual contents maintained in our original order document. The fraudulent document lacks any signature, stamp, or adherence to our established coding system. Our official purchase order bears a specific coding system, including the issuer’s name (E for Emmanuel, the procurement director).
“The fraudulent document which is dated 12/12/2022, has a different address on the letterhead from our actual operating address at the time. The document features an edited and misplaced company logo, inconsistent with our official document format. Our authentic purchase orders include all relevant addresses, terms, and conditions. The validity of any purchase order from Nexus24 Agrik Commodities Limited is strictly five days, after which the supplier is expected to request a version update from the procurement unit.
“We trust in the EFCC’s commitment to upholding justice and combating economic and financial crimes. We are available for any further clarification or assistance required during the investigation,” the petition reads.
“Our organization whose account has been frozen by Taj Bank Limited cannot access funds deposited with the Bank because of what we are not aware of, that is why we are seeking your interventions to see that justice is done,” he said.
