EFCC Seeks Interim Forfeiture Of $8.3m, N2.2b Linked To Patience Jonathan
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday, urged a Federal High Court in Lagos to order the interim forfeiture of the sums of $8.3 million and N2.2 billion allegedly linked to former first lady, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, to the federal government.
The EFCC in an exparte application it filed before Justice Mojisola Olatoregun, is asking the court to order temporary forfeiture of the sum of $3,645,013.73 domiciled with First Bank of Nigeria Ltd and traced to Mrs Jonathan, to the government.
Asides this sum, the EFCC is also seeking the interim forfeiture of another $4.3m, N1.8bn, N226m, $429,381.87 cents and various other sums traced to six others said to have links with the former first lady.
The anti-graft agency, in an affidavit attached to the application and deposed to by one of its Investigating officer, Huleji Tukura, averred that the First Bank account was opened while Mrs. Jonathan served as the permanent secretary of the Bayelsa State Government.
The commission also stated that she had procured the then Senior Special Assistant to the Former President, Goodluck Jonathan on Domestic Affairs and Household matters, Hon. Waripamo-Owei Dudafa to fund the account with proceeds of unlawful activities allegedly diverted from the federal government.
Dudafa on the other hand, was said to have procured one Festus Iyoha and Arivi Peter, who were domestic staff attached to the State House, Abuja, to also deposit funds into the account by using fictitious names.
A total sum of $4,036,750.00 (Four Million, Thirty Six Thousand, Seven Hundred and Fifty United States dollars), reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities, were deposited into the account, out of which Mrs. Jonathan had withdrawn the sum of $1,000,000.00 cash, leaving the balance of the sum of $3,645,013.73, which sum the EFCC now seeks its forfeiture to the Federal Government.
The six other persons named in the suit are: Globus Integrated Services Limited, Finchley Top Homes Limited, AM-PM Global Network Limited, Pagmat Oil And Gas Limited, Magellan Resort Limited, and one Esther Oba, who is said to be at large.
However, an attempt by counsel to the defendants, Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN) and Mike Ozekhome (SAN) to enter appearance in the proceedings was rejected by Justice Olatoregun.
The judge agreed with the EFCC that the application was exparte and as such, they had no right of audience.
The development made the lawyers to stage a walk out of the court, but before leaving, they made the point that the application was an abuse of court process as the EFCC had filed about four cases on the same subject matter before other judges of the court.
In a short ruling on the application, Justice Olatoregun directed the EFCC to file within seven days, an affidavit showing that the application before her is not the subject matter of litigation before any other court.
She then adjourned further proceedings till the 23rd of January, 2018.
