Suspects In Tropical Bank Shs1Bn Scam Want Top Bank Bosses Charged On Same Case
The accused Tropical bank staffers in the Dock at the Anti-Corruption Court on Tuesday
By Haruna Nair
Seven Tropical Bank officials who allegedly conspired to defraud the financial institution of Sh1Bn, which was irregularly paid to Margret Nabona, as an administrator of the estate of Elmrabet Abdurezzagh, who were recently arrested, want their former bosses included on the charge sheet.
The bank officials, who are currently out on bail, include; Michael Kaggwa, the bank Sales officer, Brian Anguni, the customer service Officer, Aisha Nakyanzi, the senior compliance officer and Sarah Bayiga, the Branch Operations Supervisor.
Others are Hussein Imran Sadiq, the Relationship Officer and a one Ntalo, the Chief Teller, who all appeared before the Anti-Corruption Court on Tuesday 12th July 2022.
The seven bank staffers made their submission before Chief Magistrate Joan Aciro through their defence lawyer Tony Tumukunde, seeking to have their bosses, the Executive Director Tropical Bank limited, Joweria Mukalazi and Head of Risk Tumusiime Hillary, to be charged for the same offences.
Their lawyer revealed that all the staffers were doing the transaction processes which were being overseen by their seniors, who included the supervisors through different department heads.
However, the staffers pinned their bosses on being part of the alleged cartel, since such amounts of money could not be cashed out without the top bank bosses being involved in the procedure of approval which included the legal and complaint department of the bank.
It is upon that background that the accused persons’ defence lead lawyer Tumukunde tasked court to force the bank to disclose any exhibits, statements and evidence reasonably overseeable like emails of approval of cash payments that includes all internal communication from relevant departments so that the staffers can get fair hearing for justice to be served.
The lawyer told court that more evidence in form of internal email correspondences between supervisors and their juniors ought to be brought to court as evidence in the case to prove that the release of funds was given a green light by the accused’s superiors.
“All the accused were fired by the bank and no longer have access to these emails to show the internal communications with their supervisors. We ask the court to force the bank to present them. The emails will show why the accused acted the way they did,” Tumukunde intimated.
The lawyer also told court that the case was because of “fights” between the juniors and their supervisors, noting that the emails will prove so but added that they are being hidden by the top bosses in the bank for fear of their names being dragged into the case.
Lawyer Tumukunde also asked the court for the prosecutor to provide initial disclosure by availing details including documents to show how the dormant account from which the money was stolen was re-activated without the top officials’ knowledge.
The defence lawyer prayed to the court to issue an order to force the bank to remove restrictions on the staffers’ accounts so that they can access their funds since they were all dismissed and their accounts got frozen, something which the bank, did yet it was the court that should have issued those restrictions. He revealed that the embattled staffers are struggling badly following due the high fuel prices and the skyrocketing prices of various commodities.
However, the judge advised that the staffers can sue the bank through a different suit either in a civil or commercial court because this court is now dealing with a criminal matter.
The trial magistrate, Joan Aciro directed the state to ensure the said documents are retrieved from the bank and submitted to court by August, 12, 2022 when the case returns for mention.
However, it is alleged that city lawyer Lukungu Musa and the seven accused parties, to wit, officials at Tropical Bank, in November 2021, allegedly conspired to defraud the financial institution of Shs1Bn, which was irregularly paid to Margret Nabona, as an administrator of the estate of of a Libyan national Abdurezzagh Elmrabet.
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