The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC) on Friday closed its case against a former Governor of Abia,
Orji Kalu and two others charged with N3.2 billion fraud.
The EFCC Prosecutor, Mr Rotimi
Jacobs (SAN), announced closure of the prosecution’s case at the Federal High
Court, Lagos.
The EFCC had on October 31, 2016,
slammed a 34-count charge bordering on N3.2 billion fraud against Kalu, his
former Commissioner for Finance, Ude Udeogo, and Slok Nigeria Ltd.
The accused had pleaded not
guilty to the charge and were granted bails.
NAN reports that Jacobs had led
the 17th prosecution witness, Chidi Chukwuka, in evidence at the last
adjournment.
At the resumed trial of the case
on Friday, Kalu’s counsel, Mr Awa Kalu (SAN), continued the cross-examination
of the witness.
Chukwuka had earlier told the
court that he was a Deputy Director in the Nigeria Deposit Insurance
Corporation (NDIC) and an investigator with the EFCC as at the time of the
alleged fraud.
He said during his
investigations, he had obtained statements from Mr Samuel Iheke, a former
Permanent Secretary in the State Ministry of Local
Government and Chieftaincy
Affairs.
He said he also obtained
statements from Mr Chinedum Elechi, the then Secretary, Association of Local
Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in Abia.
Awa applied to tender the
statements the witness had identified and same were admitted and marked as
Exhibits Z to Z9 respectively.
When the witness was asked what
the state officials had told him was the reason for the N26 million monthly
withdrawals from the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC) account of the
state, the witness replied: “The officials had claimed that the withdrawals
were used for sanitation in Abia State.”
He testified that over N2.5
billion was transferred from the Abia Government House main account to Abia
State University and Secondary Education
Management Board accounts.
Counsel to the second accused, Mr
Solo Akuma (SAN), asked if the witness was fully involved in the investigation
to which he responded in the
affirmative.
Akuma: By count 24 of the charge
preferred by the EFCC against the accused, is it correct to say that the N554
million came in various cheques?
Witness: I don’t know.
He said the EFCC did not
investigate the accused before the petition from Eyinnaya Abaribe.
Mr Kingsley Nwofo (SAN), counsel
to Slok Nigerai Ltd., asked the witness if any of the statements had shown
funds move from the Government House accounts to the third accused (Slok), he
responded in the negative.
Justice Mohammed Idris adjourned
the case until May 30 and May 31 for defence to open their case.
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