144 
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Gombe Zonal Command, on January 12, 2022 handed over a cheque of Three Million, Six Hundred and Thirty-Nine Thousand, Five Hundred Naira (N3, 639,500) to a retired Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Education, Adamawa state.
The victim, Alhaji Muhammed Mubi, 86 year old, received the cheque at his Yola residence, from Abdullahi Suraiju, Head, Foreign Exchange Malpractice Section (FEMS), on behalf of the Commander, Gombe Zonal Command, Babashani Umar Sanda.
โI present this cheque to you being funds recovered for you by the Commission in the course of investigation into your petition.โ Suraiju stated.
The recovery was sequel to a petition by the victim sometime in November, 2021 alleging unauthorized withdrawal from his Unity Bank account where he receives his pension.
The victim reported that he decided to report the issue to the EFCC after he went to withdraw some funds but was told he couldnโt due to insufficient funds standing to his credit. He requested for his bank statement and realized that an Automated Teller Machine, ATM, was issued in his name to withdraw all his savings.
Investigation by the EFCC revealed that the crime was carried out by a former employee of the bank, who took advantage of the victimโs vulnerability and age, gained his trust by offering unsolicited assistance before perpetrating the crime.
Investigation further revealed that what was stolen from the victimโs account was more than the Two Million, Nine Hundred Thousand Naira(N2,900,000) the victim reported in his petition.
The victim, through his counsel, thanked the Commission for what he described as โswift and professional responseโ on the matter.
