Justice Ridwan Aikawa of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Friday, March 2, 2018, adjourned further hearing in a N4.9bn fraud case involving a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode and others to March 29, 2018.
Fani-Kayode is standing trial alongside a former Minister of State for Finance, Senator Nenadi Usman, Danjuma Yusuf and a company, Joint Trust Dimensions Limited, on a 17-count charge bordering on money laundering to the tune of N4.9billion.
At today’s sitting, counsel to Fani-Kayode, Norrison Quakers, SAN, cross-examined a prosecution witness, Shedlis Gana, Branch Manager, Zenith Bank Plc, Abuja.
During the cross-examination, Quakers sought to establish a contradiction in the testimony the witness gave in the statement she made to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
He also sought the leave of the court to tender the statement extracted from the witness as evidence.
However, the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, raised an objection to the admissibility of the statement by the court.
Oyedepo argued that the defense counsel must establish the contradiction between the testimony given in chief and the details in the statement.
Also, Fedinard Orbih, SAN, counsel to the first defendant, continued with his cross-examination of Gana, who confirmed to the court that exhibits 6, 7, 8 and 9 were all certified by the bank.
She stated that the bank sourced for campaign accounts, as political parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, organized fundraisers in the build-up to the 2015 general election.
She confirmed that exhibits 9 (pages 2-5), 8, 9, 11, 13-54 were all crossed cheques for Joint Trust Dimensions Limited.
Gana further said that there was nothing unlawful about the transactions because the bank went through a due process when the cheques were being processed.
“Each of the cheques was thoroughly analyzed,” she added.
Consequently, Justice Aikawa adjourned the matter to March 29, 2018 for a continuation of trial.
Wilson Uwujaren
Head, Media, and Publicity
2 February, 2018
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