by Admin | Mar 16, 2017 | Blog |
Follow @NigeriaPI The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday said Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose paid an intial N75million to a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) ,Mike Ozekhome, from an alleged N1.2billion the governor allegedly received from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). The commission said it froze Ozekhome’s account because the money was suspected to be a proceed of crime. Ozekhome prayed Justice Abdullazeez Anka to unfreeze his firm’s account, which the court froze at EFCC’s instance on February 7. Opposing the application, EFCC’s lawyer Rotimi Oyedepo argued that Ozekhome ought to have known that the money he received was proceeds of “fraudulent activities”. He said: “EFCC received an intelligence report that Mr Ayodele Fayose received N1,219,490,000 from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) through the former Minister of State for Defence Musiliu Obanikoro, who conveyed the money through an aircraft to Akure airport. “It discovered that N137million was paid into an account, 1003126654, operated by Fayose on June 26, 2014. “On August 22 and 27, 2014, N50million and N118million were also credited to the account.” Oyedepo said having discovered the funds were “proceeds of crime”, EFCC approached Justice Mohammed Idris of the court’s Lagos division for an order freezing the account. The lawyer said the order by Justice Idris was not appealed by either Fayose or the bank, where the money was lodged. “The N75million is from the proceed of the alleged crime fraudulently taken from ONSA and kept in Fayose’s account from where it was transferred to Ozekhome,” he said. Oyedepo said EFCC could freeze any account suspected to have received...
by Admin | Mar 16, 2017 | Blog |
Follow @NigeriaPI The Federal High Court in Ibadan has sentenced a former employee of Wema Bank, Ademola Oni, to 12-year imprisonment for conspiracy and money laundering. The court, which was presided over by Justice Joyce Abudmalik on Thursday, also ordered that the convict forfeit all his properties and cash in various banks as proceeds of crime. The properties to be forfeited by the convict are an empty plot of land fenced with black gate located along the road beside Secam Church, Providence Estate, Sango Eleyele Expressway, Ibadan. He is also to forfeit a Honda Accord Car 2014 model and another empty plot of land located at Alao Akala Estate, along Akubu Ojuirin, near Apostolic Church, Ikolaba, Ibadan. Others are a storey building located at Aminu Olaniran Street, Ikolaba behind the Apostolic church, Ikolaba Assembly, Ikolaba, Ibadan; and three acres of land at Okuna Village, Along Akufo Village, by Fumakson filling station, Ido Local Government Area, Ibadan. An empty plot of land at No. 16, Awolowo Avenue, Old Bodija, Ibadan; a storey building located at No. 16, Awolowo Avenue, Old Badija, Ibadan; and a borehole machine are to be forfeited also. He is also to forfeit several sums in bank accounts, including N43,259,441.22 in a fixed deposit account with FCMB; N70,614.60 in the name of ‘De-City-Life Enterprise with account No. 22749019 also domiciled with FCMB; another N7,189.22 in the name of Oni Iyabo Mary in the same bank; and N966,788.81 in the First Bank account of Ezomal Ventures, among others. Ademola was arraigned alongside six former officials of the CBN and 15 others from different commercial banks in an alleged...
by Admin | Mar 16, 2017 | Blog |
Follow @NigeriaPI A Muslim cleric, Kazeem Alimson, popularly known as Alfa has been arrested for killing a three-year-old boy, Chiagozie Okereke at the White Sand area of Isheri-Oshun, Ejigbo, Lagos. A 15-year-old boy, Simon Kanu, said he was paid N500 by the said Alimson to lure the baby, adding that the baby was killed with a heavy stone in his presence. The deceased’s mother explained that her baby went missing around 7.pm on Tuesday after she brought him out for his evening bath. She narrated: “When I finished bathing the younger one, I went inside to get the wrapper to strap him in order to enable me bathe the other child. But on getting outside, I didn’t see my baby again. The sister said he went into my neighbour’s house but I didn’t see him there and when I asked, they said he went out with Simon. “I called my son’s name but there was no response. Later, we saw Simon that night, I asked him about the whereabouts of my son, he said he did not see him. Simon took my son, strangled him with his shirt and stoned him to death. He is my third child. I feel hurt. My heart is broken. I need justice.” The Isheri Osun Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Emeodi Camilus, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), who got a tip-off, rushed to the scene and arrested the two suspects. During interrogation, Simon. a primary six pupil added that the Alfa took him and the child to an uncompleted building where the boy was murdered with a heavy stone. “I went to site...
by Admin | Mar 16, 2017 | Blog |
Follow @NigeriaPI The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has said that Chief Mike Ozekhome acted contrary to the law when he failed to inform the commission of the seventy-five million naira he claimed was paid to him as a legal fee by the governor of Ekiti state, Ayodele Fayose. At the resumed hearing today on the application seeking an order to unfreeze the accounts of Ozekhome chambers EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo said it is the law that lawyers must report to the EFCC when they receive payment more than 10 million naira. Arguing before Justice Abdulazeez Anka of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, Oyedepo said Ozekhome committed an infraction of the law by failing to do so. Chief Ozekhome in response, argued that is not the place of lawyers to report their payment to the commission but of the bank to alert the EFCC when they receive deposits more than ten million naira. The Commission had claimed that the N75m paid into the account at Guaranty Trust Bank by Governor Fayose was a proceed of crime and that the senior lawyer reasonably ought to have known that he should not receive such money whether it was a legal fee or not. Ozekhome argued that as a lawyer, he is entitled to his legal fees, stating that the account through which the money was transferred into his account has been unfrozen by an order of Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court in Ado-Ekiti. “One of the reasons Justice Taiwo rejected EFCC’s application was that by section 36 of EFCC Act, the name of Fayose was...
by Admin | Mar 16, 2017 | Blog |
Follow @NigeriaPI The Nigeria Supreme court on Nigeria has decleared the conviction of Human traffickers Serah Ekundayo Ezekiel, who was earlier sentenced to 7 years imprisonment for trafficking in persons The judgment by the apex court brings to an end the legal battle which started in 2011 in Ikeja, Lagos. In a unanimous decision on Friday, the five Justices of the Supreme Court who sat on the matter upheld the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division. In his lead Judgment, Justice C.C Nwaeze found no merit in the appeal and therefore, dismissed it. Serah Ezekiel was sued at the Federal High Court, Ikeja, Lagos on November 18, 2011 by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) on behalf of the Attorney-General of the Federation on an 18 Counts charge, all bothering on offences of trafficking in persons contrary to various sections of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Law Enforcement and Administration Act, 2003 (as amended) Ezekiel, who was 29 year old as at the time of committing the offence in July 2011 procured four females, aged 17, 19, 20 and 21 years from various parts of Lagos State and took them to Mali where they were used as prostitutes. On arraignment, she pleaded guilty to all the counts and was subsequently found guilty, convicted on all the 18 counts and sentenced. Aggrieved by her conviction and sentence, Serah Ezekiel approached the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division which affirmed the trial Court’s verdict. Still not satisfied, she approached the Apex Court but had her case dismissed for lack of merit. Reacting to the Supreme...
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