An investigating officer of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Shehu Shuaibu, has narrated how the sum of N1.5billion was fraudulently transferred from the Ministry of External Affairs account to Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited account allegedly belonging to former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode.
In 2016, the anti-graft agency arraigned Fani-Kayode, a member of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s presidential campaign team, alongside Nenadi Usman, a former Minister of State for Finance, on a 17-count charge bordering on alleged money laundering and diversion of N4.9billion.
Led in evidence by the EFCC prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo as the trial continued on Friday, the witness stated that his team from the Special Task Force of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was assigned to investigate a petition which alleged that the total sum of N1.5billion was fraudulently transferred from Ministry of External Affairs account to Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited account No 1010740698 with Zenith Bank.
He said, “We commenced investigation immediately and wrote a letter of investigation activities to Zenith Bank requesting for a statement of account of Joint Trust and all the transactions in the account.
We received the response and analysed them. Our findings revealed that on January 8, 13, and 16 ,2015, the sum of N300million, N400million, and N800million respectively were transferred from Ministry of External Affairs research project account, and Ministry of External Affairs research capital account respectively into Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited account.”
The witness further said that these monies were moved into Fani-Kayode ‘s (second defendant) company account, Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited with Zenith Bank.
He stated that between February 20 to the end of March 2015, the second defendant withdrew N200million cash, and between Match 20 and 25, he withdrew another sum of over N250million.
According to the witness, on February 12 one Olubode (now at large) made a cash payment of the sum of N24million to a company, Paste Poster at No 125 Lewis Street, Lagos, and also on February 12, made an additional cash payment of the sum of N60million to the same company.
Justice Osiagor adjourned further hearing on the matter until March 25.