The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday discharged and acquitted Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita, former Head of Service (HoS) of the Federation, of alleged money laundering offences, six years after the trial began.
Justice James Omotosho, in a ruling on the separate no-case submissions filed by Oyo-Ita and her co-defendants, held that their applications were meritorious.
The former HoS, her Personal Assistant, Ubong Effiok, and seven others had been facing alleged money laundering charge to the tune of N570 million.
Justice Omotosho, in the ruling, held that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)’s case “was built on the quicksand of speculations, suspicions and shoddy investigation.”
According to the judge, I must say here that the case presented by the prosecution has no weight whatsoever.
“Crucial elements of money laundering offences which are the establishment of a predicate offence were glaringly absent in this case presented by the prosecution,” Justice Omotosho said.
The judge held that Oyo-Ita, who was the 1st defendant in the 18-count charge, was not a shareholder or director in the companies allegedly linked to her.
Justice Omotosho also held that the monies allegedly given to the ex-HoS by the 3rd prosecution witness (PW-3) and PW-5 had not been shown to be proceeds of illegal activity.
“Those contracts were duly approved and executed as confirmed by PW-7 and PW-8.
“Even the Estacodes, Duty Tour Allowances (DTAs) and air tickets paid by PW-4 to 7th defendant (Ubong Effiok) for the benefit of 1st defendant (Oyo-Ita) have also been shown to have been duly approved and that the 1st defendant was not an approving authority.”
According to the judge, her alleged failure to fully disclose her assets was also not thoroughly investigated and the result is a case that is doomed to fail.
“In final analysis, the no-case submissions filed by the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants on the one hand, the 4th – 6th defendants and the 7th to 9th defendants are meritorious.
“Consequently, these no-case submissions are hereby upheld.
“Accordingly, the 1st – 9th defendants are hereby discharged and acquitted of the 18-count charge,” Justice Omotosho ruled.
NAN reports that the EFCC had, on Feb. 28, 2020, filed the 18.counts against Oyo-Ita, Frontline Ace Global Services Ltd and Asanaya Projects Ltd as 1st to 3rd defendants.
The commission, in the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/20/2020, also named Garba Umar, Slopes International Ltd, Gooddeal Investments Ltd, Ubong Okon Effiok and U & U Global Services Ltd as 4th to 9th defendants respectfully.
The defendants were being prosecuted for alleged fraud in relation to DTAs, Estacodes, conference fees fraud and receiving kick-backs on contracts to the tune of N570 million.
In count one, Oyo-Ita, while serving as a deputy director in the Federal Ministry of Power, and Frontline Ace Global Services Ltd, a company incorporated in Nigeria and of which she was alleged to be the sole signatory of its bank accounts at Zenith Bank, were alleged to have, sometime in April, 2010, committed the offence.
The ex-HoS and the company were alleged to have collaborated in disguising the genuine ownership of the sum of N20 million paid by the ministry into the Frontline Ace Zenith Bank account number: 1011518656 which sum was derived directly from an illegal act.
The offence is punishable under Section 14(1)b) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2004, among other counts.
Oyo-Ita and her co-defendants, who were first arraigned on March 23, 2020, before Justice Taiwo Taiwo (rtd.), pleaded not guilty to the 18 counts.
The case was, however, reassigned to Justice Omotosho after Justice Taiwo’s retirement.
The EFCC, in the trial, called eight witnesses and tendered documentary evidence to establish its case.
After the prosecution closed its case, the defendants opt for a no-case submission.
The defendants, who argued that the prosecution had failed to establish any ingredient of the offences against them beyond reasonable doubt to warrant any defence whatsoever, submitted that the commission had not made out a prima facie case against them.
Delivering the ruling, Justice Omotosho observed that a no-case submission is a situation where there is no sufficient evidence adduced by the prosecution on which the court can convict a defendant or for him to enter his defence.
According to him, It can also mean a situation where it appears to the court that the prosecution has failed to establish a prima facie case.
“The law presumes an accused person to be innocent until the contrary is proved and as such asking him to enter his defence will amount to asking him to prove his innocence,” he said.
The judge, who listed what the court must look out for in upholding or dismissing a no-case submission in line with Section 303 of ACJA, held that the evidence led by the prosecution had not shown that the sums of monies in counts 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the charge were tainted with unlawful activities.
“The law is trite that to establish money laundering offences, the prosecution is expected to establish a predicate offence first before the issues of disguising, concealing the origin or conversion of properties comes in,” he said.
According to him, the allegation made by the prosecution is only that monies were paid into the account of Frontline Ace Global Resources Limited.
“The prosecution did not provide any shred of evidence to show that the monies are tainted with illegality.
“It is not enough to simply say that monies were paid into the accounts from the Federal Ministry of Power without an explanation of what the payments were for.
“Relying on the scanty evidence of the prosecution will be engaging in speculations.
“Criminal trials require credible proof and not speculations or suspicions.
