An Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigator, Usman Zakari, yesterday appeared before a Federal High Court in Lagos where he narrated how a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Jumoke Akinjide, and others allegedly took delivery of N650m in March 2015.The EFCC had preferred a fraud and money laundering charge of N650m against Akinjide and two others over the campaign money for the People’s Democratic Party in Oyo State.
According to Zakari who testified as the second prosecution witness in the case, Akinjide and two others collected the cash at the Dugbe branch of Fidelity Bank in Ibadan on the standing instruction of a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.
Zakari said his investigation revealed that the N650m was part of N23bn which Diezani warehoused in the bank.
He said he found that the N23bn was the naira equivalent of $115.01m, which Diezani collected from three oil marketers and one Lano Adesanya in the build-up to the 2015 general elections.
Zakari, who was led in evidence by the EFCC prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo, said his investigation followed “a top classified Category A intelligence” about a meeting convened by Diezani in her house in December 2014.
According to him, the meeting was attended by Diezani, the Managing Director of Fidelity Bank, Nnamdi Okonkwo, and some oil marketers.
The investigator said pursuant to the meeting, one Auctus Integrated Limited took $17.8m to the bank; another company, Northern Belt Oil and Gas, took $60m to the bank; while one Mid-Western Oil Services Limited also paid $9.5m.
But defence counsel, Chief Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN), Michael Lana and Akinola Oladeji, urged the court to expunge Zakari’s entire evidence for being hearsay.
They contended that the investigator could not give evidence about the meeting in Diezani’s residence and the payments of money, which he did not personally witness. Justice Muslim Hassan adjourned the case till March 23, 2018 for further proceedings.