A university professor, based in Oyo, Oyo State, has petitioned Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) over an alleged illegal withdrawal of about ₦10 million, in two tranches, from his account.
The university lecturer, pleading anonymity, claimed that the sum of ₦9,980,000 was twice withdrawn from his account within two minutes, and wrote to GTBank, demanding for an immediate reversal of the money.
Counsels to the professor, stated in a formal petition on 21 February 2026, that the illegal transaction occurred in the mid-morning, a period during which the varsity don said he was not using his banking app.
The funds were reportedly transferred to accounts domiciled with Paga Bank in the names of Isah Ahmed Ahmed and Nasir Nasir Sanusi.
A breakdown of the alleged withdrawals indicated that on the said day, at 10:19 am: a transfer of ₦4,990,000 was sent to a Paga account owned by Isah Ahmed Ahmed.
Also at 10:21 am, same day, a second transfer of ₦4,990,000 was sent to Nasir Nasir Sanusi, also via Paga.
Thus, a total sum of ₦9,980,000 was allegedly withdrawn illegally from the savings of the university professor within a space of two minutes.
The GTBank account holder insisted that he neither authorised the transactions, nor shared his personal identification number (PIN), token, or any other banking security that could have enabled the two withdrawals.
His lawyers argued that the transactions pointed to a failure in security systems of GTBank, raising concerns about possible negligence or internal compromise that allowed the transfers to be completed.
They maintained that the bank has a duty to safeguard customers’ deposits and prevent unauthorised access to accounts, adding that the withdrawals should not have been processed without proper verification.
“Our client categorically denies authorising the transactions and holds the bank responsible for the unauthorised debits which occurred within its banking infrastructure and security framework,” it was stated in the petition.
It was further argued that GTBank breached its “duty of care” to safeguard the professor’s life savings, suggesting that the breach occurred within the bank’s own systems, rather than through user’s error.
The petition has been formally served to the GTBank Branch Manager in Oyo and copied to the bank’s legal department.
The professor’s legal representatives also disclosed that a seven-day ultimatum has been issued to the bank for the full refund of the illegally withdrawn money.
This was as the professor threatened that his lawyers are ready to institute formal legal proceedings against the bank, should it fail to refund the money within the seven-day window.
Meanwhile, there is no official statement or reaction, yet, from GTBank in respect of the alleged illegal withdrawals.
