BREAKING NEWS, Judiciary
–
HAMMAADAMA Bello, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s detective, has told a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Maitama, Abuja, that Stephen Oronsaye, former Head of Service of the Federation, received N50 million from the allegedly diverted $2.1 billion earmarked for arms procurement.
Bello who was testifying as the sixth prosecution witness in Oronsaye’s ongoing trial on charges of criminal breach of trust, said the former Head of Service collected the N50 million in cash from the immediate past National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki. Earlier before Bello’s testimony on Friday, the EFCC re-arraigned Oronsaye before the court on amended seven counts of breach of trust.
The former Head of Service was first arraigned on March 15, 2016 on two counts of criminal breach of trust involving an alleged use of his position as the then Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Financial Action Task Force between 2013 and 2014 to convert the sum of N190m belonging to the committee to his personal use.
However in the amended seven counts to which he also pleaded not guilty on Friday, he was accused of criminal breach of trust involving allegations that between 2013 and 2015 he converted the total sum of N382.9m belonging to the committee to his personal use.
The EFCC alleged that Oronsaye sourced the sum of N382.9m from the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Office of the National Security Adviser in the name of the PCFATF and deposited it in a secret account with Access Bank Plc without the knowledge of other members of the committee.
The prosecution alleged that Oronsaye invested the money at nine per cent interest rate in the said secret account which he allegedly opened and operated unilaterally as the sole signatory unknown to other committee members.
It said the only account of the PCFATF known to all members of the committee and which Oronsaye and the then secretary to the committee, Mr. Jalal Arabi (now Permanent Secretary, Presidential State House) were its co-signatories was the one kept with Zenith Bank Plc.
The prosecution told the trial judge, Justice Olasunbo Goodluck that the alleged offences were contrary to section 311 and punishable under section 315 of the Penal Code Act. After the amended charges were read to him on Friday, the prosecuting counsel, Offem Uket, called two additional witnesses. – Punch
— Jun 3, 2016 @ 19:10 GMT
|
Tags:
