…denies N411m alleged misappropriation
The Ilorin Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has submitted a counter-affidavit before the Justice Evelyn Ayandike-led Federal High Court, Ilorin, the Kwara state, seeking to dismiss the complaints filed by the former commissioner of finance, Mr Ademola Banu against the bench warrant issued for his arrest by the court.
The Informant247 reports that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had on Friday, 23rd February 2024, filed charges against the former governor of Kwara state, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed and Hon. Ademola Banu, who served as Commissioner over alleged money laundering in the case number; FHC/IL/18C/2024 (FRN vs Abdulfatah Ahmed & Anor).
During the court session presided over by Justice Evelyn Ayandike, the EFCC had informed the court that Ademola Banu jumped the administrative bail granted to him by the commission, adding that all efforts to reach him had proved abortive and that the intelligence report had revealed that Ademola Banu absconded to the United Kingdom after getting information that Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed had been invited and detained, which made the lead counsel for the anti-graft agency, Rotimi Jacob urged the court to issue a bench warrant for Banu’s arrest and was consequently granted.
Jacob had urged the court to rely on Section 83 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) to issue a summons against his surety, Salami Bashiru Ola or a bench warrant for the arrest of the second defendant (Banu).
The story so far:
Sequel to this development, the ex-finance commissioner had on Monday, February 26, 2024, filed an Application/Motion asking the court to vacate the bench warrant for his arrest on the account that facts presented to the court by the EFCC were untrue and misleading.
Banu, in an affidavit sworn to on his behalf by Aisha Mahmud, a copy of which was made available to our correspondent, noted that contrary to the assertions and allegations made by the EFCC, he had left the country for the United States on the 21st December 2023, to see his family and also attend to his health.
It was noted that the passport and the e-ticket attached to the Application made it clear that Mr Banu returned to Nigeria on the 6th of February, 2024, and has been in the country while the EFCC had claimed that he was in the United Kingdom.
Furthermore, the statement also described EFCC’s claim that he was not reachable as incorrect, saying all his mobile phones were active even while he was in the United States of America.
EFCC’s claim of jumping bail is false – Banu
Giving an account of the alleged jumping of bail, the ex-finance commissioner asserted that the issue of jumping bail did not arise because there was no new investigation and invitation by the EFCC after getting declared as an acquitted defendant on 18th November 2020 by the court on the previous Suit with case Number FHC/IL/24C/2019.
He noted that the previous charges preferred against him, the Travel Messenger, and one Mr Adeyemi in Suit Number FH/IL/24C/2019, which were withdrawn by EFCC leading to his acquittal by the court, are similar to the current/extant charges contained in the case No: FHC/IL/18/2024 against Abdulfatah Ahmed and himself.
However, in the counter-affidavit, the EFCC asserted that the previous charges in the suit with case Number FHC/IL/24C/2019 were withdrawn as a result of their inability to join Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed as a co-defendant because he had then enjoyed immunity from prosecution.
The EFCC had, in its counter-affidavit, also alleged that Ademola Banu authorised the payment of N411m to Travel Messenger Ltd from a One Billion Naira loan said to have been obtained by the Kwara State Government in 2019.
Ademola Banu, in the fresh affidavit, however, described this as mischievous and incorrect. He has attached a Memo from the Government House showing that it was the Permanent Secretary, Government House, who got the approval of the then governor for N254 Million to be paid to the Travel Messenger limited in conformity with their demand notice for services rendered to the State Government.
Banu had also attached a copy of the Memorandum of Understanding dated 10th January 2012, executed between the State Government and Travel Messenger Ltd for chartered flights and the relevant Memo of the Kwara State Permanent Secretary.
Contrary to EFCC’s justification for withdrawing the earlier case, Ademola Banu also submitted that the second and the third Defendants in the previous case, i.e. Travel Messenger and Mr Adeyemi, respectively, petitioned the management team of the EFCC, through an attached letter dated 21st August 2020 titled/headed: ‘RE:APPLICATION FOR REVIEW OF THE CASE AGAINST MR. ADEMOLA ADEYEMI AND TRAVEL MESSENGERS LTD. IN CHARGE NO: THC/IL/24C/2019-FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA V. OLAREWAJU ADEMOLA ADEYEMI & 2 ORS’. that the case was baseless without any merit and called for a review of the case on the merit.
After the review, the immediate past management team of the EFCC had according to investigations discovered that the previous charges contained in case Number FHC/IL/24C/3019 were baseless without any merit and had consequently granted the request made through the petition and directed that the Charges in the suit with case Number FHC/IL/24C/ 2019 be withdrawn from court; that the lien on the bank account of Travel Messenger Ltd alleged to have warehoused the laundered funds should be lifted and that the beneficiary should be allowed to utilise the fund.
Mr Ademola Banu had also attached a letter sent to the Inspector General of the Nigeria Police Force and all other security agencies by the Controller General of the Immigration Services asking that the name of Ademola Banu should be removed from the watchlist as the EFCC has cleared him through a letter with ‘ref: CR: 3000/EFCC/ILR/BF/VOL.1/055 dated 13th January 2021’.
The date for the hearing of the Motion to vacate the bench warrant issued for Banu’s arrest has not been fixed, while the substantive case was adjourned until the 29th and 30th of April 2024 by Justice Evelyn Ayandike on 23rd February 2024.
