A Niger State businesswoman, Aishat Isah Yelwa, who recently refunded N330 million erroneously credited to her First Bank account, has been warned by bank staff not to involve her family or disclose the incident publicly, the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) reports. Yelwa gained attention on Thursday after Lapai TV, a community media platform, reported that she returned the large sum to her branch in Lapai Local Government Area.
According to an audio recording obtained by FIJ, a First Bank staff member, identified as Suleiman, cautioned Yelwa that sharing the information on social media could harm her relationship with the bank and expose her to scrutiny from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Suleiman reportedly told Yelwa that the credited amount was a system error, not actual funds or an increase in her loan limit, as she had an existing N5 million loan with the bank. In the recording, Suleiman asked whether she had returned physical cash or merely corrected the figures, adding that EFCC could investigate her tax records, business registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), and the source of the money. He reportedly said: “They did not credit you, so what is your problem? What you saw is a system error, and why are you exposing yourself to EFCC?”