How we moved N200m cash from Fayose’s home – EFCC witness

Johnson Abidakun, an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) witness in the N2.2billion fraud trial involving a former Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose, told the Federal High Court, Lagos, how they moved N200million cash from the ex-governor’s residence for lodgment in a bank account.

Abidakun, who is the Head of Operations at the Ado Ekiti branch of Zenith Bank, told Justice C.J. Aneke that his duty in the bank was to oversee three units – Funds Transfer; Cash and Teller; and Customer Service.

The banker, who was led in evidence by a member of the EFCC prosecuting team, Adebisi Adeniyi, said the transaction began with a call on April 16, 2016, from his Zonal Head, Dr. Abiodun Oshode, instructing him of the need to move N200million cash from Fayose’s residence down to the bank.

He said: “I received a call from my Zonal Head, Dr. Abiodun Oshode, that there was an assignment to be carried out; that there was a sum of N200million to be moved from the residence of the then governor, Ayodele Fayose. He said we had to go and move the cash urgently and I immediately called upon the cash officer to arrange for policemen.

“The policemen arrived after 30 minutes. We arranged for their payment and called it police money. We also arranged for the cash driver and the cash movers.

“So, they set out for the assignment. After about one hour, they came back with the money and the money was counted and ascertained to be N199.5million as against N200million.

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“While detailed counting of the money was going on, Mr. Abiodun Agbele came in with one other man, Mr. Taofeek.

“I know Mr. Abiodun Agbele to be close to the governor but I don’t know his position; he gave instructions that the money should be credited into the account of Still Earth Nigeria Limited and that the depositor was Mr. Taofeek.

“At the point of posting, I discovered that the deposit slip was filled by my subordinate, Oputu Okeimute. I asked him why he filled the deposit slip and he said the depositor could not read or write. After that, the money was credited into the account of Still Earth.”

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