Fani-Kayode scales money laundering charges

A Federal High Court in Lagos has discharged and acquitted, former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode of money laundering charges brought against him by the EFCC.

The trial judge, Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, in a judgment on Wednesday, freed Fani-Kayode after holding that “the prosecution case is feeble” and had failed to prove the allegations against the accused person beyond reasonable doubt.

Fani-Kayode, whose trial began in 2008 before Justice Ramat Mohammed, was accused by the EFCC to have laundered about N100 million while he was the Minister of Culture and Tourism and subsequently, Aviation Minister. The allegedly laundered sum was, however, reduced to N2.1million on Nov. 17, 2014 after Ofili-Ajumogobia dismissed 38 out of the 40-count leveled against Fani-Kayode for want of proof.

The EFCC prosecutor, Keyamo, while urging the court to uphold the remaining two counts and to accordingly convict Fani-Kayode, said the former minister had failed to exonerate himself of the allegations. Keyamo pointed out that the object of the charge was that Fani-Kayode transacted in cash sums above N500,000, which was the threshold stipulated by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.

Keyamo had argued that Fani-Kayode had admitted making such transactions in his confessional statement of Dec. 22, 2008 to the EFCC. He said: “In this statement, he admitted that he transacted in cash above N500,000. My Lord, this statement went in without objection by the accused person and the statement was voluntary.

“With the combination of this confessional statement and the statement of the IPO that investigated the allegation, we rely on all of this to submit that we have discharged our burden that monies were received by the accused person in cash and were not done through any financial institution.”

Read Also: What is Fani-Kayode up to?

Speaking with newsmen, shortly after he was acquitted, Fani-Kayode said “I wish to thank the Nigerian judiciary for dispensing justice in an honest and God-fearing way and for refusing to be intimidated by anyone or guided by anything other than the evidence presented before them in this case.

“I thank them for refusing to send an innocent man to jail and for refusing to allow themselves to be used as tools for personal and vindictive vendettas or political persecution,” he added.

Meanwhile, the EFCC in reaction to the judgment, said it would study same before deciding on what next to do.

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