The Federal High Court in Lagos
on Tuesday heard that Abdullahi Babalele, a son-in-law of former Vice-President
Atiku Abubakar, allegedly gave former President Olusegun Obasanjo the naira
equivalent of $140,000.
An Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC) witness, Bashir Mohammed, told Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke that
he delivered the cash to Obasanjo on behalf of his “close friend” Babalele.
Babalele is on trial for
allegedly laundering $140,000 in the build-up to the 2019 general elections.
The EFCC arraigned him on two
counts of money laundering in August.
He procured Mohammed “to make a
cash payment of $140,000 without going through any financial institution,” the
anti-graft agency claimed.
EFCC prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo,
said the money exceeded the threshold stipulated by the money laundering Act.
The alleged February 20, 2019
transaction contravened Sections 18 (c) and (2)(b)of the Money Laundering
(Prohibition) Act, 2011, Oyedepo said.
Babalele pleaded not guilty.
On Tuesday, the EFCC called
Mohammed as its first witness.
Led in evidence by the EFCC
counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, the witness narrated how he allegedly delivered the
sum to the former president at his Abeokuta, Ogun State home.
Obasanjo endorsed Atiku, who was
the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), ahead of this
year’s presidential poll.
But Atiku lost the election to
incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Mohammed said he got a phone call
from Babalele sometime in February, requesting him to deliver a message to “an
elder statesman.”
He said on Babalele’s request he
supplied two bank accounts, which were credited.
The court heard that the witness
took the money to Obasanjo’s residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Mohammed said: “When I got to the
gate, somebody came and took me inside where I met former President Olusegun
Obasanjo and delivered the message.”
“I called the defendant in the
presence of former President Obasanjo and informed him that I had delivered the
message. He said that was good and thanked me.”
Under cross-examination by the
defence counsel, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), Mohammed affirmed that he wrote a
statement at the EFCC office during the investigation.
Ozekhome’s bid to tender the
statement as an exhibit was, however, opposed by the prosecutor.
Justice Aneke adjourned till
today to rule on the admissibility of the statement.
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