Mrs-Patience-Jonathan
A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos and presided over by Justice Babs Kuewumi Wednesday convicted four companies of money laundering totalling $15.5m lodged in their respective Skye Bank accounts.
The companies are Pluto Property and Investment Company Limited; Seagate Property Development & Investment Co. Limited; Trans Ocean Property and Investment Company Limited and Avalon Global Property Development Company Limited , all said to have strong ownership relationship with a former Special Adviser on Domestic Affairs to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Mr. Waripamo-Owei Dudafa.
The said money was also being claimed by ex-first lady Patience Jonathan who had sued the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission insisting that the money was hers and should be handed to her. The case started with the freezing of the accounts by the EFCC which was probing Dudafa for alleged money laundering.
The companies had on September 15, 2016 pleaded guilty to the charge of money laundering but Dudafa, a lawyer, Amajuoyi Briggs; and a banker, Adedamola Bolodeoku pleaded not guilty.
EFCC prosecutor, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo had told the court that the money was stolen from the State House, Abuja. He gave a narration of how the money was stolen.
According to the EFCC lawyer the anti-corruption agency received an intelligence report showing vividly that the fourth to seventh defendants retained proceeds of crime.
“Our investigations showed that Festus Iyoha, a domestic staff in the State House, admitted receiving the funds from the first defendant (Dudafa). He admitted that funds credited into the accounts were given to him from the State House.”
Oyedepo said Iyoha paid $3,096,377.38 into Pluto’s account; $3,410,534.71 into Seagate’s account; $3,765,711.87 into Trans Oceans’ account; and $250,000 into Avalon Global’s account all at Skye Bank.
While convicting the companies of money laundering, the judge noted that the EFCC had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Meanwhile the conviction, according to some lawyers, may whittle the case of the ex-First Lady who had insisted that the said money belonged to her.
