Witness narrates how Obanikoro flew N1.2bn cash in aircraft for Fayose

A prosecution witness, Damola Otuyena, has given details of how a former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro ferried N1.2 billion in cash to the immediate past governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose.

Otuyena gave the details when the Fayose’s trial opened by Justice Mojisola Olatoregun of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, adding that the cash was loaded in three aircrafts.

Fayose and his company, Spotless Nigeria Limited, are being tried by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC, for alleged N2.2 billion fraud.

According to the EFCC, Fayose used the money for his governorship election in Ekiti State in 2014, arguing that he ought to reasonably that the money was a proceed of an illegal activity.

Fayose and his company pleaded not guilty to the 11 count charge when they were arraigned on the 22 of October. The charges bordered on criminal breach of trust, theft and money laundering.

At the opening of the trial on Monday, the anti-graft agency called four witnesses, all bankers to prove the allegations.

Otuyena, who was the fourth witness to be called, identified himself as the Head, Cash and Transit Services, Diamond Bank and narrated to the court how he delivered N1.2bn cash in a bullion van to Obanikoro and his son, Gbolahan, on June 16, 2014 at the private wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport and how the ex-minister loaded the money into about two or three aircraft for onward movement to Ekiti State.

According to Otuyena, the transaction began when he received instructions from his director, one Premier Oyewo, who said the bank needed to pay N1.2bn cash to some beneficiaries on behalf of a firm, Sylvan McManara, and that he (Otuyena) needed to get the cash ready.

This transaction instructions, he said, were accompanied by a list of six beneficiaries and how each of them were to be paid.

Speaking further, Otuyena said the document bearing the instructions was signed by the signatory to the account of Sylvan McManara, who did not write his name and gave instructions that the bank should pay the beneficiaries without demanding their means of identification as he (the unnamed signatory) had waived

He listed the beneficiaries and the amount they were to receive as follows:

According to Otuyena, the beneficiaries and the amount of money they are to receive as follows: Santuraki Bello, N200m; Yusuf Olama, N120m; Chimenu Njokwu N250m; Josiah Moses N280m; Abubakar Zana, N200m; and Franklin Tolani N150m.

According to the witness, the beneficiaries did not turn up and when he informed his director, he was again instructed to proceed to the airport to and wait for further instructions.

Otuyena said: “We then contacted the company that renders the bullion van services to help us move the cash to the airport and it was moved to the private wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport but when we got there, we could not gain access.

“We waited outside. I called my director, he said we should wait, that someone would come to attend to us.p

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“Soon, he called to say someone was there to give us access. He spoke to a certain Gbolahan Obanikoro by my phone and told me that that was the person that would help us enter the airport. He did and we were able to move the bullion van into the airport.

“After sometime, a person I later identified as Senator Musiliu Obanikoro came and my boss called me and spoke to Obanikoro using my phone and said he was the one to receive the cash and the cash was handed over to him.

“At the point of handover, they told us not to remove all the cash from the bullion van because they needed to load the cash into aircraft. Two or three aircraft were used to move the cash. When the cash was moved, we left the airport.”

When crossed examined by the second defence counsel, Mr. Olalekan Ojo, SAN, Otuyena admitted that by virtue of a 2013 McManara board resolution, which was forwarded to Diamond Bank, one Mr Olalekan Ogunseye, was the sole signatory to the firm’s account, while also admitting that Obanikoro was neither listed as a director nor a shareholder in the firm’s board resolution.

He however insisted that based on the instructions by his director, Obanikoro was the operator of McManara bank account while also pointing to a document, showing how Gbolahan Obanikoro requested a Diamond Bank electronic product.

“For his (Gbolahan’s) signature, address and phone number to be on the document, he must be a signatory to McManara’s account,” Otuyena told the court.

The witness also disagreed with Ojo that there was nothing to show that Obanikoro received N1.2bn from Diamond Bank.

“I do not agree because Exhibit E is purportedly written by the account holder and it is clearly stated that Musiliu Obanikoro is the signatory,” he said.

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