First Bank of Nigeria Limited has come under renewed scrutiny following its move to enlist the intervention of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) in the alleged forgery case involving two of its senior managers, a development that stalled their arraignment before the Federal High Court in Lagos.
The managers, Temitope Ogheneteme and Nnedimma Arah, are facing charges of conspiracy and forgery instituted by operatives of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Lagos State Police Command, in a charge marked FHC/L/582C/2025, pending before Justice Daniel Osiagor.
When the matter came up for arraignment, the prosecution counsel, Barrister Emmanuel Eze, informed the court that the prosecution was ready to proceed.
However, counsel to the defendants, Barrister Ihegazie, disclosed that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) of the Federation had written to the police, requesting the transmission of the case file for review, following a petition by FirstBank.
Justice Osiagor subsequently adjourned the case to March 11, 2026, effectively putting the prosecution on hold.
The DPP’s letter, dated January 26, 2026, and addressed to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, SCID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos, confirmed that the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation had received a petition in respect of the charge.
The letter requested the immediate transmission of the duplicate case file to the Lagos Liaison Office of the Federal Ministry of Justice to enable a review of the matter in line with the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.
The intervention followed a formal petition by First Bank of Nigeria Limited, also dated January 26, 2026, in which the bank urged the AGF to take over the prosecution pursuant to Section 211 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The bank described the allegations against its staff as “trumped-up” and warned that the criminal proceedings amounted to an abuse of the justice system.
According to FirstBank, the dispute arose from a $400,000 credit facility granted to Freshborn Industries Limited, insisting that all transaction documents were duly executed at the time the Letter of Credit was established.
The bank claimed that following foreign exchange fluctuations, the customer was requested to increase its cash collateral but allegedly refused.
Rather than comply, Freshborn Industries was said to have instituted a civil action at the Lagos State High Court, denying execution of one of the transaction documents.
Despite this, the company later petitioned the police, accusing FirstBank officials of forging a letter of undertaking dated August 12, 2022, relating to foreign exchange differentials.
The bank acknowledged that it had already paid the foreign supplier, after which the customer cleared and sold the imported goods, before escalating the matter to law enforcement.
Critics argue that FirstBank’s resort to federal intervention raises serious questions about corporate accountability, internal compliance controls, and the use of prosecutorial powers to manage commercial disputes.
According to the charge sheet, the defendants allegedly committed the offences between January 2023 and January 2024 at the Dosumu and Balogun branches of FirstBank, Lagos Island.
They were accused of conspiring to forge Freshborn Industries Limited’s letter of undertaking and presenting it as genuine to FirstBank, to the prejudice of Anene Ikenna, Anene Chinyere Angel, and Freshborn Industries Limited.
The alleged offences are punishable under Section 516 of the Criminal Code Act and Section 1(2)(c) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap. M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
The case has suffered multiple delays. An earlier arraignment fixed for July 2025 failed due to the defendants’ absence, while a subsequent date, November 4, 2025, could not proceed because the trial judge was outside the jurisdiction on official assignment.
As the DPP reviews the case, the spotlight remains firmly on FirstBank, with legal observers watching closely to see whether the alleged forgery case proceeds to trial or is discontinued under federal prosecutorial powers.
