The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday, 31 October, 2021, tendered more evidence in the trial of retired Col Sambo Dasuki and three others before an Abuja High Court presided over by Justice Charles Agbaza.
Dasuki, a former National Security Adviser (NSA), is charged with an amended 32-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust, dishonest release and receiving various sums of money to the tune of N33.2 billion.
The anti-graft agency accused him of misappropriation of security funds in the accounts of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), alongside a former General Manager with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Aminu Baba-Kusa.
The others are two firms: Acacia Holdings Limited and Reliance Referral Hospital Limited.
The EFCC, which arraigned the four defendants afresh on March 25 in a case that began in 2015, also accused Dasuki, among others, of releasing the equivalent of N10 billion in foreign currencies from the NSA’s account.
The account with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for the 2014 presidential primary election of the then ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Dasuki and his co-defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges, marked as FCT/HC/CR/43/2015.
At the resumed hearing of the case, PW1, Adariku Michael, a detective with EFCC, informed the court that the commission received an intelligence report on Sept. 21, 2015, bordering on abuse of office and money laundering.
He was taken in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, SAN.
He alleged that the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) moved huge sums of money between October 2014 and April 2015 to accounts of various companies.
The witness said the report was assigned to a special task force headed by ACE Halimah Kazeem.
The witness said that on receiving the report, the special task force swung into action and wrote a letter to the CBN.
He narrated how money for the ONSA account in the CBN was transferred to different individuals and companies into their different banks.
Responses from requests sent to CBN and other banks were tendered in evidence and marked as exhibits.
The defendants’ counsel, A A Usman for Dasuki, Solomon Umoh, SAN, for Baba-Kusa and Acacia Holdings Limited, and A O Ayodele for Reliance Referral Hospital Limited, reserved their objections.
The parties, as suggested by Umoh, agreed to be shown the documents before the proceedings so that the trial can go smoothly.
Justice Agbaza then adjourned the case until Nov. 11 for continuation of hearing.
Source: Vanguard online
