The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on November 5, 2018, filed fresh charges against Patrick Akpobolokemi, former Director General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and six others before Justice Raliatu Adebiyi of Ikeja High Court in Lagos.
He was charged alongside former Governor Juan, Vincent Udoye, Ezekiel Agaba, Ekene Nwakuche, Adegboyega Olopoenia and a company, Gama Marine Nigeria Ltd.
EFCC lead counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, informed the court that the anti-graft agency had filed fresh charges against the defendants, noting that they should be re-arraigned and have their plea taken.
The defence counsel to Agaba, E. D. Onyeke, however, requested for more time to examine the new charges and to advise his client accordingly.
It could be recalled that Akpobolokemi was discharged and acquitted by the Appeal Court on June 1, 2018, which overruled the earlier decision of Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court in Lagos who, in October 2017, dismissed Akpobolokemi’s no-case submission.
Meanwhile, the five other defendants were not discharged as the appellate court upheld Justice Buba’s verdict that they had a case to answer.
On Feb. 20, 2019, a prosecution witness narrated how Akpobolokemi instructed Access Bank of Nigeria to illegally transfer N138,000,000 (One Hundred and Thirty Eight Million Naira) to his company, Peniel Engineering Limited’s account.
At the resumed hearing of the matter on February 26, 2016, prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo led three witnesses Yahaya Mohammed Yusuf and Wakili Dauda, (both bureau de change operators) and Olamide Ogunsanya, an Assistant Director with NIMASA, in evidence.
Yusuf, who is the 7th prosecution witness told the court how he received the sum of N230,926,000 (Two Hundred and Thirty Million, Nine Hundred and Twenty Six Thousand Naira) from Extreme Vertex Nigeria Limited through an account: Kofar Fada Nigeria Limited, owned by his brother.
Extreme Vertex Nigeria Limited is one of the companies alleged to have benefited from the disbursement of over Two Billion Naira from the Committee on International Shipping and Port Security (ISPS) in NIMASA.
On 22 May 2019, Yahaya, told a Federal High Court in Lagos State how Akpobolokemi used his letterhead to secure fake contracts.
At one of the trials, specifically on May 18, 2016, a witness, Ugochukwu Obi, the Executive Director Maritime Labour and Cabotage and the Personal Assistant to Akpobolokemi, made startling admissions.
He told how the Executive Director Calistus Nwabueze, used his company to siphon money from NIMASA.
At the last adjourned date, the prosecution produced six witnesses out of which PW3 was stood down thereby leading only five individual witnesses.
At the resumed hearing, witness Obi, a Special Assistant to the Executive Director made some admissions.
He disclosed before the court how a company he owns, Knight and Sheriff, was used by his boss Barrister Calistus Nwabueze to launder money.
The laundered monies ran into several millions of naira, to the tune of N61,100,000 (Sixty One Million, One Hundred Thousand Naira) between March 4, 2014 and May 7, 2015.
The case continues.
Adeseye Ogunlewe – N409 million fraud
Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe who is a former Minister of Works and former Pro-Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, was arraigned on November 25, 2016, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In a suit No. AB/EFCC/03/16, Ogunlewe alongside the Vice-Chancellor of FUNAAB, Prof. Olusola Oyewole; and the Bursar of the institution, Mr. Moses Ilesanmi, were arraigned before the Ogun State High Court, Abeokuta, on 18 counts, bordering on conspiracy, stealing, obtaining money by false pretense and abuse of office in connection with an alleged N409 million fraud.
The court later sat on the case in January 26, 2017, before Justice Olatokunbo Majekodumi of an Abeokuta High Court where Ogunlewe requested that his name be removed from the corruption case.
Wale Adesokan, counsel to Mr. Ogunlewe, had brought an application seeking to quash his client’s name from the case, saying the court has no jurisdiction to hear the case.
Adesokan said that Counts 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 and 8 deal with stealing while Counts 12, 13, 14 and 15 deal with abuse of office. Also counts 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 alleged that the defendant “stole and fraudulently converted certain sum of money.”
According to him, Section 383(1) of the Criminal Code, Laws of Ogun State, provides that a charge cannot allege two offences; stealing by taking and stealing by conversion. The trial was adjourned to February 9 2017, and was later struck out on May 16, 2018.
The Ogun State High Court sitting in Isabo, Abeokuta, discharged and acquitted Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, the immediate past Vice Chancellor of FUNAAB, Professor Olusola Oyewole and the Bursar of the institution, Mr Moses Ilesanmi in the suit filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The court, presided over by Justice Olatokunbo Majekodunmi dismissed the suit for lacking in merit. In the judgement, Justice Majekodunmi held that the EFCC failed to prove all the allegations against the accused persons.
The judge declared that all the evidences presented by the prosecution had been manifestly discredited through cross-examination such that the court could not rely on them.
The judge, thereafter, discharged and acquitted the accused, all of whom were present in court. The presiding judge in her judgement declared that the EFCC failed woefully in establishing a prima facie case against the accused persons. Case concluded.
[This Publication includes part of a compendium by Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) covering corruption cases as at 22nd of November, 2019.]
