The judge in February 2021 dismissed six out of the seven charges filed against Umar
The Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal on Thursday set aside the judgment of a Federal High Court, Abuja which discharged and acquitted a former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Mohammed Dikko Umar of a money laundering charge to the tune of N66 million.
The former Air Chief was prosecuted on one count of money laundering involving N66 million allegedly stolen from the account of the Nigerian Air Force during his tenure in office between 2010 and 2012.
Justice Nnamdi Dimgba had in the judgment ruled that the prosecution failed to provide any evidence that Umar gave the instruction for the transfer of the said funds for the renovation of his private property in Abuja.
In his view, it would be dangerous to speculate that Umar must be aware of every financial transaction from the accounts of the Nigerian Air Force.
The judge in February 2021 dismissed six out of the seven charges filed against Umar by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following a no-case submission.
Dissatisfied with Umar’s acquittal, the EFCC through its counsel, Sylvanus Tahir appealed the judgment, asking the appellate court to set aside the judgment of the lower court, a statement by Wilson Uwujaren, EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity said on Thursday.
In a unanimous judgment today, a three-man panel of Justices led by Justice Elfrieda Oluwayemisi Williams–Dawodu upturned the judgment of the lower court and ordered that the defendant continue with his defence on counts 1,2,3,5 and 6
The lower court had ruled in its judgment in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CR/92/2016 that it found merit in a no-case submission the Defendant filed in relation to counts with respect to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the charge against him, and went ahead to discharge and acquit him.
Justice Dimgba held that a holistic review of the totality of the evidence before the court showed that the EFCC failed to establish a prima facie case that would warrant the Defendant to be called upon to enter his defence to the six counts.
He held that allegations in the counts were based on “speculation, suspicion and assumptions”.
“Asking the Defendant to open his defence on them will be tantamount to asking the Defendant to establish his innocence, or to prove a negative.
“This would amount again to a judicial displacement of the constitutional presumption of innocence which enures to his benefit,” the court held.
However, the Appeal Court held that the former COAS has a case to answer with respect to count seven of the charge which bordered on the allegation that he transferred the sum N66 million from the official bank account of the Nigerian Air Force, NAF, in Stanbic IBTC bank, into the account of his lawyer, and used same to renovate his property in Asokoro, Abuja.
“Having reviewed the evidence adduced as relates to this count, I am of the view that there is a ground for proceeding with a defence in relation to it.
“There is evidence led, as shown in Exhibit AMD15, that indeed such a transfer of funds was done. And the transfer was done around March 2012 at a time when the Defendant was in charge at the NAF as the COAS.
“Evidence had been led that the property in question at Asokoro had been purchased by the Defendant (albeit through the PW1 and by proxy), and for his own personal use.
“There was no evidence or suggestion that the property was an official property or that it belonged to the NAF or was being purchased for the NAF,” Justice Dimgba said.
“I hereby direct the Defendant to open his defence in relation to this count,” Justice Dimgba further held.
Umar, who piloted the affairs of the Nigerian Air Force between September 2010 and October 2012, was arraigned before the court on January 25, 2017.
EFCC had accused him of complicity in money laundering and procurement fraud, to the tune of about N9.7 billion.
The anti-graft agency, among other things, alleged that the Defendant while in office as the Chief of Staff, withdrew N700 million from the NAF account, and used same to purchase a choice property at a highbrow area within the Maitama District of Abuja.
He was further alleged to have fraudulently withdrawn N500m from the said NAF account to buy a four-bedroom duplex at Road 3B, Street 2, in Mabushi Ministers Hill, Abuja.
Besides, EFCC, told the court that the defendant also took N250m from the NAF’s coffers to buy a property at No. 14, Audu Bako Way, GRA, Kano State in 2011.
The Prosecution closed its case on September 29, 2020, after it called a total of 12 witnesses and tendered 19 pieces of documentary evidence before the court.
Thereafter, the Defendant who earlier pleaded not guilty to the charge opted to make a no-case submission in line with Section 303 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015.