ABUJA, Nigeria — 9 September 2026: Nigeria’s Court of Appeal has dismissed former NEXIM Bank managing director Robert Orya’s appeal and upheld his conviction in a ₦2.4 billion fraud case. The court preserved the 10-year term imposed on each of 49 counts, but the sentences run at the same time rather than one after another.
Did Robert Orya receive a 490-year prison term? The trial court imposed 10 years on each of 49 counts, producing a cumulative headline total of 490 years. However, it ordered the terms to run concurrently. The Court of Appeal has now affirmed that judgment, leaving an operative 10-year prison sentence.
What the Court of Appeal decided
A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal in Abuja unanimously dismissed Orya’s challenge on Tuesday, 8 September. Justice Muhammed Danjuma delivered the lead judgment, with Justices Ntong Festus Ntong and Ele Ejo Enenche also sitting on the panel, according to a published account of the judgment.
The court said the appeal lacked merit and affirmed the judgment delivered by the Federal Capital Territory High Court on 5 February 2026. Premium Times reports that the panel resolved the issues raised by Orya against him and in favour of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The appellate decision does not create a new conviction. It leaves in place the trial court’s findings and sentence after Orya asked the higher court to overturn them.
Why reports describe 490 years and 10 years
The apparently conflicting descriptions come from the structure of the original sentence. The trial court convicted Orya on 49 counts and imposed 10 years’ imprisonment for each count. Multiplying those terms produces 490 years, which is the cumulative figure appearing in many headlines.
However, the judge directed that all 49 terms should run concurrently. As TheCable explains, the terms are served at the same time, not consecutively. The longest single term is therefore the operative sentence: 10 years.
That distinction matters because saying Orya will physically serve 490 years would misstate the court’s order. The 490-year number reflects the sum of the sentences attached to all counts; it does not mean the terms were stacked end to end.
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Appeal Court Upholds Robert Orya’s Fraud Conviction
Sep 9, 2026
Sep 9, 2026
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ABUJA, Nigeria — 9 September 2026: Nigeria’s Court of Appeal has dismissed former NEXIM Bank managing director Robert Orya’s appeal and upheld his conviction in a ₦2.4 billion fraud case. The court preserved the 10-year term imposed on each of 49 counts, but the sentences run at the same time rather than one after another.
Did Robert Orya receive a 490-year prison term? The trial court imposed 10 years on each of 49 counts, producing a cumulative headline total of 490 years. However, it ordered the terms to run concurrently. The Court of Appeal has now affirmed that judgment, leaving an operative 10-year prison sentence.
What the Court of Appeal decided
A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal in Abuja unanimously dismissed Orya’s challenge on Tuesday, 8 September. Justice Muhammed Danjuma delivered the lead judgment, with Justices Ntong Festus Ntong and Ele Ejo Enenche also sitting on the panel, according to a published account of the judgment.
The court said the appeal lacked merit and affirmed the judgment delivered by the Federal Capital Territory High Court on 5 February 2026. Premium Times reports that the panel resolved the issues raised by Orya against him and in favour of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The appellate decision does not create a new conviction. It leaves in place the trial court’s findings and sentence after Orya asked the higher court to overturn them.
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Why reports describe 490 years and 10 years
The apparently conflicting descriptions come from the structure of the original sentence. The trial court convicted Orya on 49 counts and imposed 10 years’ imprisonment for each count. Multiplying those terms produces 490 years, which is the cumulative figure appearing in many headlines.
However, the judge directed that all 49 terms should run concurrently. As TheCable explains, the terms are served at the same time, not consecutively. The longest single term is therefore the operative sentence: 10 years.
That distinction matters because saying Orya will physically serve 490 years would misstate the court’s order. The 490-year number reflects the sum of the sentences attached to all counts; it does not mean the terms were stacked end to end.
The case against the former NEXIM chief
The EFCC arraigned Orya in 2021 on 49 counts involving obtaining money by false pretence, forgery and advance-fee fraud. Prosecutors said the transactions involved approximately ₦2.4 billion connected to loans and companies used while he led the Nigerian Export-Import Bank.
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Justice F.E. Messiri of the FCT High Court found Orya guilty on all 49 counts in February. A detailed account published by TheNigeriaLawyer records charge number FSC/SC/CS/487/2021 and says the Court of Appeal affirmed the trial judgment in its entirety.
Orya had denied the charges when he was arraigned and later exercised his right to appeal. The new ruling means the conviction is no longer merely a trial-court outcome; it has survived its first appellate challenge. Publicly accessible reports did not state whether his lawyers intend to pursue a further appeal.
Orya’s role at NEXIM Bank
Orya served as managing director of NEXIM Bank from 2009 to 2016. The federal development-finance institution supports Nigerian exports and was created to help expand the country’s non-oil trade.
According to the court reporting, then-President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua first appointed Orya in August 2009, and President Goodluck Jonathan renewed his appointment in August 2014. The financial transactions examined at trial were linked to his period in charge of the institution.
The case attracted renewed attention because of the dramatic cumulative sentence and Orya’s former position at a government-owned bank. Yet the most important new fact is procedural: the appellate court reviewed his challenge and declined to disturb the conviction or sentencing order.
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The publicly reported ruling confirms the dismissal of this appeal. It does not establish that every possible legal route has ended. Nigerian appellate procedure may permit a further challenge, depending on the issues and any application pursued by Orya’s legal team.
Until lawyers or the courts announce another step, the February conviction and concurrent 10-year sentence remain in force. Any report of a new appeal should be tied to a filed court process rather than assumption.
The case also provides a caution for readers encountering large cumulative prison figures. The number of counts, the sentence on each count and the court’s direction on whether terms run concurrently or consecutively all determine what the order means in practice.
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