A Federal High Court in Abuja has convicted and sentenced a former Acting Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr Chukwunyere Nwabuoku, to 72 years imprisonment over N868.4 million fraud.
Justice James Omotosho delivered the judgment on Monday in Maitama, Abuja, after finding the defendant guilty of money laundering.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had arraigned Nwabuoku on a nine-count charge bordering on money laundering involving N868,465,000.
The charges alleged that the convict, alongside some companies and other persons at large, conspired between September 2019 and October 2020 to convert proceeds of unlawful activities.
The prosecution further stated that the defendant used multiple corporate accounts to receive and launder funds.
Some of the funds include N262.6 million, N202.8 million and N281.1 million paid into accounts linked to different firms.
The Judgment
Delivering judgment, Omotosho held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, noting that credible and concrete evidence was presented.
“The evidence is clear that funds meant for the Ministry of Defence were converted to personal use when they were transferred into corporate accounts for the benefit of the defendant.
“The defendant failed to justify the source of the funds, including the purchase of a N64 million property and shares worth N200 million.
“He refunded N220 million to the EFCC, which indicated admission of guilt,”the Judge said..
The judge further held that the defendant played a central role in opening and operating the accounts used in committing the offences, thereby establishing conspiracy.
On other counts, the court found that the defendant concealed the origin of N355 million paid into another account.
According to him, no legitimate business transaction was provided to justify the funds.
Omotosho also observed that prior to 2019, the defendant’s account balance was about N3 million but rose significantly to millions within the period of the offences.
“The timeline is quite curious as it coincides with the timeline of the said offences,” he said.
The court subsequently convicted the defendant on multiple counts and sentenced him to a cumulative term of 72 years imprisonment.
