BEVERLY HILLS, June 15, (THEWILL) – The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has finally dragged a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode before the Federal High Court, Lagos, over a 17-count charge bothering on conspiracy, unlawful retention of proceeds of theft and money laundering.
The former minister had been in the detention of the EFCC since May 10 when he honoured an invitation extended to him at the commission’s office in Abuja.
According to the charge, Fani-Kayode is to be arraigned together with Mrs Nenadi Usman, one Danjuma Yusuf and a company named as Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited. The suspects were said to have allegedly committed the offences between January 8, 2015, and March 25, 2015, in the build-up to the general elections.
The anti-graft agency claimed in one of the charges that Fani-Kayode, who it listed as the 2nd defendant in the charge sheet, and his co-defendants conspired among themselves to “indirectly retain the sum of N1.5billion, which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: stealing.”
Endorsed by the EFCC prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo, the charge sheet indicated that the said conspiracy and indirect retention of the N1.5billion constituted an offence under Section 18(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012, punishable under Section 15(3)( 4) of the same Act.
In another count, the EFCC alleged that Fani-Kayode “directly retained the sum of N350m,” which the anti-graft agency claimed that he ought to have “reasonably known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: stealing.”
Fani-Kayode, who was the spokesman of the Goodluck Jonathan campaign organization in 2015, was accused of directly using parts of the money at various times, including an N250,650,000, which he allegedly used between March 20 and 25, 2015.
He was also accused of making a cash transaction of N24m with one Olubode Oke, said to still be at large, on February 12, 2015 “to Paste Poster at 125, Lewis Street, Lagos Island.”
The duo were said to have made the transaction without going through any financial institution, an act the EFCC claimed was contrary to Sections 1(a) and 16(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012 and punishable under Section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.
