The Lagos Division of the Federal High Court has set March 22 as the date for the prosecution to present its witness in the ongoing money laundering trial of former Governor Ayo Fayose.
The trial judge, Chukwujekwu Aneke, instructed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecutor, Rotimi Jacobs, to ensure the witness appears in court on the said date.
Mr. Fayose is facing charges alongside Spotless Investment Ltd. on 11 counts related to alleged fraud and money laundering amounting to N6.9 billion. During Friday’s proceedings, Jacobs represented the EFCC, while Ola Olanipekun and Olalekan Ojo represented the first and second defendants respectively.
Jacobs informed the court that the intended witness for the day, Aliyu Madaki, was unable to attend court as he was held up in Jos and is no longer employed by the EFCC, now residing in Nasarawa.
Mr Jacobs, however, said he had just discovered that the court would be on Easter vacation by then, and he consequently prayed for a further date.
Meanwhile, the second defence counsel, Mr Ojo, expressed displeasure at the witness’s absence, which he said showed great disrespect to the court.
Mr Ojo insisted that whatever issues prevented the witness from attending court did not happen today, so the prosecutor could not have waited until today before informing the counsel.
In support of this position, the first defence counsel, Mr Olanipekun, also expressed dissatisfaction on the grounds that the prosecutor ought to treat the matter with the importance it deserved and informed the counsel earlier.
Although the prosecutor insisted that a date in March would not be sufficient for him to ensure the witness’ presence, the judge told the prosecutor to inform the witness that it was an order from the court.
Consequently, the court fixed March 22 for cross-examination and ordered the prosecutor to produce his witness on that date.
The court also fixed further dates of April 25 and April 26 to continue the trial.
The EFCC is prosecuting Mr Fayose for alleged N6.9 billion fraud and money laundering.
He was first arraigned on October 22. 2018, before Justice Mojisola Olatotegun, alongside his company, Spotless Investment Ltd., on 11 counts bordering on fraud and money laundering.
Mr Fayose pleaded not guilty to the charges and was granted bail on October 24, 2018.
The defendants were re-arraigned before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke on July 2, 2019, after the case was withdrawn from Olatoregun following a petition by the EFCC.
Mr Fayose equally pleaded not guilty before Mr Aneke, who allowed him to continue on the bail granted him by Olatoregun.
The EFCC has since opened its case before Mr Aneke and is leading witnesses in evidence.
According to the commission, on June 17, 2014, Mr Fayose and Abiodun Agbele took possession of N1.2 billion to fund his gubernatorial election campaign in Ekiti.
The EFCC alleged that the sum formed part of crime proceeds.
Mr Fayose also allegedly received $5 million cash from then-Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, without going through any financial institution.
The EFCC also alleged that the former governor retained N300 million in his bank account and took control of the aggregate
sums of about N622 million, which formed part of crime proceeds.
It added that Mr Fayose procured De Privateer Ltd. and Still Earth Ltd. to retain N851 million, considered part of crime proceeds.
EFCC also accused Mr Fayose of using about N1.6 billion crime proceeds to acquire property in Lagos and Abuja.
The former governor also allegedly used N200 million in crime proceeds to acquire a property in Abuja in the name of his elder sister, Moji Oladeji.
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