Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Aviation Minister, has been
re-invited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission,(EFCC) over document
falsification
Fani-Kayode is standing trial over alleged N4.6billion money
laundering, alongside Nenandi Usman, a former Minister of State for Finance.
A former Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of
Nigeria (ALGON) Yusuf Danjuma, and Jointrust Dimensions Nigeria Ltd are also
defendants in the case.
The defendants who are facing a 17 count charge of money
laundering preferred against them by the Anti-graft Agency had pleaded not
guilty to the charges and were granted bails.
However at the re-arraignment before a new judge, Justice
Daniel Osaigor on October, 27 2021, Fani Kayode was absent and his defence
counsel who appeared on his behalf, Mr Fred Ajudua told the court that he was
on admission at Kubwa General hospital in Abuja.
He had prayed for an adjournment on that grounds on behalf
of the second defendant but the EFCC prosecutor, Mrs. Bilikisu Buhari, informed
the court that the same tactics had always been adopted by the defendant
whenever he does not want to attend court.
After going through the court’s records, Justice Osiagor
ordered the defendant to be present in court on the next date, adding that he
should pay a fine of N200,000 in addition.
On Wednesday, all the defendants were present.
The prosecutor, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo informed the court that
the prosecution was glad that the court had figured out from its record that
the second defendant (Fani Kayode) had sought repeated excuses from the court
and it had also discovered that all letters sent by Fani-Kayode were fake.
But the Judge told the prosecutor that having granted an
adjournment on the letters, the court had become functus officio.
However, drama ensued after the case was adjourned until
January, 24 2022.
An EFCC investigator, Mr Shuaibu walked up to Fani-Kayode at
the corridor of the court and after a brief discussion, the former Minister
entered his car and followed the EFCC operatives to their office.
The operative who confirmed the arrest to newsmen said that
Fani-Kayode was in their custody on a quiz over the false documents.
He was alleged to have committed the offences between
January and March 2015.
In counts one to seven, they were alleged to have unlawfully
retained over N3.8 billion which they reasonably ought to have known formed
part of the proceeds of an unlawful act of stealing and corruption.
In counts eight to 14, the defendants were alleged to have
unlawfully used over N970 million which they reasonably ought to have known
formed part of an unlawful act of corruption.
The spokesman of the commission,
Wilson Uwujaren, could not be reached as the time of filing this report.
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