The Anti Corruption Chief Magistrates Court has on Friday, April 12, 2024, charged three more people including a former employee of Equity Bank in connection with the alleged fraud that led to the loss of billions of shillings through unsecured loans from the bank.
The three accused persons in court on Friday (Courtesy photo)
Those who have been remanded also include two former employees of Airtel Uganda, businessmen; Godfrey Mukwaya and Robert Mugumya as well as Fred Kato a former head of Small and Medium Enterprises at Equity Bank.
These have appeared before trial Magistrate Albert Asiimwe who has not allowed them to plead against the charges of Conspiracy to defraud having been joined to the file of money laundering which is only triable by the High Court.
The charging of the three brings to eight, the number of suspects in connection with alleged unsecured loans worth more than Shs62 billion from Equity Bank.
It is alleged that Mukwaya, a former sales manager at Airtel Uganda used different people to open up bank accounts through which the bank was defrauded of more than Shs10bn.
The state alleges that Mugumya is linked to 179 fictitious companies that were created to defraud Equity bank using different persons to obtain more than Shs35 billion.
The number of accused persons who have been charged in relation to this matter has now risen to eight.
They include the head of Agency Banking at Equity Bank Julius Musiime, Ms Erina Nabisubi a relationship manager for telecom, Fred Semwogerere (Banker), Tumuhimbise Crescent Tibarwesereka (relationship officer and Wycliff Asiimwe a distribution and marketing consultant with a microfinance facility.
It is alleged that between 2021 and 2024 at Equity Bank headquarters situated at Church House in Kampala, Ms Nabisubi intentionally impeded the establishment of the true ownership of Shs6.5 billion which she fraudulently obtained from Equity Bank as a loan through account number 1032100370335 in name of Najjemba Gladys purporting that the said funds were applied for by Najjemba Gladys as a loan whereas not knowing that the said funds were a proceed of crime.
The state also contends that Mr Musiime intentionally concealed the true ownership of Shs18 million which he received as gratification from Mutuuza Stella for having fraudulently processed a loan of Shs700 million from Equity Bank by requiring her to deposit the said gratification on account number 1013101211316 in name of Gilbert Rwaiheru Kiiza knowing that the said deposits were a proceed of crime.
It further alleged that in the years 2021 and 2024 at different places in Kampala and Wakiso districts, Musiime, Nabisubi, Ssemwogerere, Tumuhimbise, Asiimwe, Kato, Mugumya, and Mukwaya conspired together to defraud Equity Bank of Shs62 billion by fraudulently causing the disbursement of unsecured loans to unqualified people.
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