N2.4bn fraud: Ex-NEXIM MD Orya jailed 490 years

Robert Orya

By JUMOKE SANNI

Justice F.E. Messiri of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court, Abuja on Thursday, February 5, 2026 convicted and sentenced a former Managing Director, Nigerian Export Import Bank, NEXIM to 490 years imprisonment for bank fraud.

The convict was arraigned in 2021 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on a 49-count charge, bordering on obtaining money by false pretences, forgery and advance fee fraud to the tune of N2.4 billion.

Count one of the charges read: “That you Mr Roberts Orya while being the Managing Director of Nigerian Export- Import Bank(NEXIM BANK) on or about the 21st day of September 2011 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, with intent to defraud induced Nigerian Export-lmport Bank to pay to Treasuremix Contruction Limited the sum of Four Hundred and Eighty Eight Million Naira (N488,000,000) as loan under the pretence that the Directors of Luxurium Leisure Services Limited applied for and are the beneficiaries of the said loan which pretence you knew was false and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1(1)(b) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”

Count two reads: “That you Mr Roberts Orya while being the Managing Director of Nigerian Export- Import Bank (NEXIM BANK) on or about the 19th February 2013 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, with intent to defraud induced Nigerian Export-Import Bank to pay to Treasuremix Construction Limited the sum of Six Hundred and Thirty Million Naira (N630,000,000) as loan under the pretence that the Directors of Luxurium Leisure Services Limited applied for and are the beneficiaries of the said loan, which pretence you knew was false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (b) of Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related And Other Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”