EFCC closes case against ex-minister

Nnamdi Felix / Abuja

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Tuesday at a Federal High Court in Abuja closed its case in the trial of former Works minister, Dr. Hassan Lawal who is being tried for money laundering involving N15 million, N12.5 million and N3 million respectively which he purportedly used for the liquidation of a loan he borrowed from United Bank of Africa.

The prosecution team led by Mr. Wahab Shittu concluded his case after calling their last witness, Ms. Nkiruka Nkechinyelu Nzeduaba, the head of UBA’s Public Sector, Group 8.

The witness confirmed that she contacted Mr. Wala Adesanya, a former staff of the bank who was the former minister’s account officer at the bank, to assist the bank in the recovery of the loan owed by the former minister.

The need to contact the former staff who is standing trial alongside the former minister on the money laundering charge, according to the witness, was a personal initiative she took in carrying out her assigned duties which include the recoveries of past obligations to the bank by customers. She stated that it became difficult for the bank to access the former minister, so she sought the assistance of the former staff, to recover the debt.

The former Minister’s lawyers led by Mr. Ibrahim Isiaku, a senior advocate of Nigeria, applied for a date to enable the defence to open it’s case and intimated the court that he intends to file a “no case submission” on behalf of his client, as, according to him, there is nothing in the submissions of the prosecution and the witnesses called in the case that established that any money laundering crime was committed by the former minister.

The matter was subsequently adjourned by the presiding judge, Justice Adamu Bello, to 6th December for continuation.