Alleged N868.4m Fraud: How Former Acting AGF Anamekwe Nwabuoku Diverted Defence Ministry’s Funds – Witness

Anamekwe

By JUMOKE SANNI
The Ninth Prosecution Witness, PW9, Gudi Daniel Johnson in the trial of a former Acting Accountant General of the Federation, Chukwunyere Anamekwe Nwabuoku has narrated before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja how the defendant as former Director, Finance and Account in the Federal Ministry of Defence allegedly diverted the ministry’s funds using cash withdrawals and deposited the funds into multiple company accounts.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is prosecuting Nwabuoku on a nine-count amended charge, bordering on money laundering to the tune of N868, 465,000 (Eight Hundred and Sixty-eight Million, Four Hundred and Sixty-five Thousand Naira).

The witness, an investigator with the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission, ICPC while being led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN stated that ICPC received intelligence report from the Ministry of Defence on transactions involving Trans Afro Limited, Torch Global Limited, Teemell Limited etc. His team, which investigated the matter wrote to the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC and the banks involved. The analysis of the CAC report and bank statements he said, showed that there were inflows of money from the Ministry of Defence to the companies.

“We discovered that one Gideon Joseph was registered as a director in these companies. His address was Louis Street, Maitama and Kubwa. We invited him to answer as to what business he carried out. All the letters could not be delivered so we resorted to the Ministry of Defence where we invited the Director of Accounts, one Mr Felix to throw more light. He told us that he acted on the directives of the Director of Finance (the defendant).

“Other persons were called and they said they were instructed to withdraw the monies they received into the accounts of Teemell, Touch Global and Transactional Afro Nig. Ltd. It was on this note that we invited the Director of Finance and Accounts (the defendant). We then asked him the source of the funds and purpose and he told us that they were all payments for security operations which he said could not disclose because they were classified information. On that note we wrote to the Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA. We submitted all the documents to ONSA telling them our findings and a committee was set up including Gen. Monguno, Professor Bolagi Orasanye, me, Bellozi Adama from EFCC etc. We were told to investigate the matter,” he said.