A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has granted an interim forfeiture of the sum of N9.2bn and $eight.4m linked to the spouse of former President, Patience Jonathan.
The cash is to be forfeited to the Federal Government.
Justice Mojisola Olatoregun granted the order following a software filed earlier than her by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after it had consolidated all comparable functions on the subject material.
On April 14, whereas delivering the ruling on an objection raised by Mrs Jonathan to the EFCC’s first ex-parte software on the funds, the courtroom had held that the transfer by the anti-graft company was an abuse of courtroom course of.
The choose reached this conclusion as a result of the funds which the fee sought to forfeit to the federal authorities had been already the topic of litigation earlier than two different judges.
The choose, had, nevertheless, ordered the fee to publish the order in a nationwide newspaper to provide any get together a possibility to come back earlier than the courtroom inside 14 days to point out trigger why the sums shouldn't be completely forfeited.
Patience Jonathan, 5 companies and one, Esther Oba had been listed as respondents within the go well with.
The companies that had been listed as second to sixth defendants had been; Globus Integrated Services Limited, Finchley Top Homes Limited, Am-Pm Global Network Limited, Pagmat Oil and Gas Limited and Magel Resort Limited.
An investigator with the EFCC, Huleji Tukura, who deposed to a 15-paragraph affidavit in assist of the ex-parte software claimed that investigations by the anti-graft company revealed that the funds present in the financial institution accounts and linked to Patience Jonathan emanated from the coffers of Bayelsa State. The funds had been stated to have been moved at a time when the previous first woman served as an everlasting secretary in one of many ministries in Bayelsa State.
As acknowledged by Tukura, Mrs Jonathan first opened a First Bank account after which “procured” the then Senior Special Assistant to former President Goodluck Jonathan on Domestic Affairs, Waripamo-Owei Dudafa, to fund the account with “proceeds of unlawful activities.”
“The stated Dudafa Waripamo-Owei procured one, Festus Isidohomen Iyoha and Arivi Eneji Peter, who had been home workers connected to the State House, Abuja, to deposit the funds, moderately suspected to be proceeds of illegal actions, under consideration of the first respondent (Patience).
“In depositing the funds into the account of the first respondent, the stated home workers, in a bid to hide their identification, deposited the funds, moderately suspected to be proceeds of an illegal act, into the first respondent’s account, utilizing fictitious names.
“The complete sum of $four,036,750.00 (Four million, thirty-six thousand, seven hundred and fifty United States’ greenback) moderately suspected to be proceeds of illegal actions, had been deposited under consideration No. 2022648664 domiciled in First Bank Plc within the title of the first respondent.
“On the 28th day of September 2016, the first respondent, in dissipating the property sought to be forfeited, transferred the sum of $three,640,794.72 to the first respondent’s account No. 2031277178 domiciled in First Bank Plc.
“On the fifth day of October 2016, the first respondent withdrew the sum of $1,000,000.00 money from the stated account leaving the stability of the sum of $three,645,013.73 which sum we're urging this honourable courtroom to forfeit within the interim to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
”As on the time the varied sums had been deposited in into exhibit EFCC01, the first respondent was a serving everlasting secretary within the employment of the Bayelsa State Government.
“The funds sought to be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria are not the 1st respondent’s lawful earnings but are rather reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities”, the deponent averred.
The deponent additional averred that the businesses talked about within the software weren't into “any legitimate income-yielding business venture” however had been quite included on the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) for the aim of warehousing proceeds of illegal actions for the previous first woman.
He claimed that once in a while home servants on the Presidential Villa had been despatched to deposit cash into the businesses’ accounts for Mrs Jonathan.
“The depositors into this account are domestic staff of State House, Abuja, who was procured by the said Dudafa Waripamo-Owei to deposit the funds sought to be forfeited in a bid to conceal the true origin of the funds,” Tukura stated.
The case has been adjourned to the 11th of May, for events to point out trigger why the funds shouldn't be lastly forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.