The Adamawa State High Court sitting in Yola has convicted and sentenced the Managing Director of Bonghe Microfinance Bank, Grace Andreas Karka, to five years imprisonment for her involvement in a ₦32 million fraud case.
Delivering judgment on October 17, 2025, Justice Benjamin Lawan Manji found Karka guilty on two counts of criminal conspiracy and cheating, as filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) through its Gombe Zonal Directorate.
According to court records, Karka, in collaboration with one Prince Moses Batalu, conspired between August 2020 and March 2021 to dishonestly transfer ₦32,000,000 from the bank’s account domiciled with First Bank of Nigeria without the necessary authorization.
One of the charges read in part:
“That you, Grace Andreas Karka, and Prince Moses Batalu, between August 2020 and March 2021, in Yola, Adamawa State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did agree amongst yourselves to do an illegal act to wit: theft in the sum of ₦66,792,960.00 from Bonghe Microfinance Bank Nigeria Limited… contrary to Section 61(2) of the Adamawa State Penal Code Law, 2018.”
Karka was first arraigned on November 11, 2024, and had entered a not guilty plea, prompting a full trial. The EFCC’s counsel, Mubarak Tijani, presented witnesses and documentary evidence linking her to the unauthorized transactions, while the defence called three witnesses in her favour.
Upon evaluating the evidence, Justice Manji held that the prosecution successfully proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, convicting the defendant on both counts.
The court sentenced Karka to five years imprisonment, with an option of a ₦3 million fine on each count, to run concurrently. Additionally, she was ordered to restitute ₦29.877 million to the bank.
The case originated from an internal audit conducted by Bonghe Microfinance Bank in 2021, which uncovered unauthorized transfers to an account belonging to Batalu, who was not a customer of the institution. Despite efforts by the bank to recover the diverted funds, the missing amount remained unaccounted for, prompting the involvement of the EFCC.
