“Instead of…..”- Man reportedly credited ₦1.5billion by First Bank, chooses 1-year imprisonment over refunding entire money

A Nigerian man reportedly credited N1.5 billion by First Bank has gone viral online after opting for a 1-year jail term instead of refunding the entire money.

‎The shocking incident was shared by @arhermadd, on X (formerly Twitter).

‎Man Opts For 1-Year Jail Term

‎According to @arhermadd, the man identifed as Ogo Ehosa Kingsley diverted the money that was mistakenly credited to his First Bank account for personal use between June and November 2025.

‎However,  on January 19, 2026, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecuted him for theft and fraud.

‎ Subsequently, Kingsley pleaded guilty and was ordered to refund First Bank the outstanding balance of N272,252,193.59.

Prior to the judgment,  EFCC recovered N802.42 million from Kingsley, his mother, and sister’s bank accounts.

‎ Meanwhile, over N300 million was recovered through transfer reversal.

In a shocking turn of events, Kingsley opted for a 1-year jail term over refunding the remaining amount.

Read tweet below….

A First Bank customer, Ojo Eghosa Kingsley, became involved in a major controversy after the bank mistakenly credited his account with ₦1.5 billion..

He was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in Benin City, and on 19 January 2026, he was arraigned before the Edo State High Court. Kingsley was charged with theft and fraud under the Edo State Criminal Law (2022).

Prior to the judgment, the EFCC had recovered ₦802,420,000 from Kingsley’s account, as well as from the accounts of his mother and sister, while the bank successfully reversed transactions totaling over ₦300 million.

In a dramatic turn of events, Kingsley informed the court that he preferred serving a prison sentence to refunding the remaining amount.In effect, he openly chose incarceration over the repayment of ₦272 million.

See below….