Alleged N6.3bn Fraud: Court Reserves Judgment in EFCC, Jang’s Case

Seriki Adinoyi in Jos

The Plateau State High Court has reserved judgment in a case filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) seeking to prosecute former Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau State and a former cashier with the state government, Mr. Yusuf Pam, over an alleged N6.3 billion misappropriation of fund.

The trial judge, Justice Christy Dabup, said the date will be communicated to the parties involved in the suit.

The court arrived at the decision after the prosecution and the defence counsel adopted their written addresses.

The lead counsel to the EFCC, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), had Thursday brought two applications, asking the court to grant it leave to appeal an earlier ruling by the court against the anti-graft agency during the trial within trial. 

But the counsel to the second defendant, Mr. Sunday Odey, opposed the applications and urged the court to go ahead with the business of the day since the applications had no bearing with the adoption of their final addresses which was slated for the court’s proceedings.

After a heated argument between Jacobs and Odey, the counsel to the EFCC eventually conceded to the defence counsel that the business of the day which was the adoption of written addresses should go on as slated.

On his part, the lead counsel to Jang, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), urged the court to dismiss all the charges against his client and set him free because the prosecution had not proven their case beyond reasonable doubts.

Ozekhome insisted that: “We only have one question we have formulated concerning this case. Of all the monies which they claimed my client took, where are they? We took all the 14 witnesses called by the prosecution and asked them one after the other and none of them said they saw or link any money in my client’s bank account, his wife or any of his relatives or anyone else. Where are these billions?

“The EFCC just created its own offence in order to get at the defendant and said approval by transfer is an offence. Set him free.

“Without regard to the court, the EFCC instead of complying with the court order to file 30-page written address decided to file 151-page written applications. In spite of that, the prosecution filed another 37-page reply making it 188 pages. I think the learned council ought to have sought leave of the court to apologize. I’m surprised that the entire address suffers repetitiveness and verbosity, all geared towards pulling the wool over the eyes of the court.

“I urge my Lord to discharge and acquit my client of all the charges and set him free because an address, no matter how brilliant, cannot take the place of legal prove and evidence.”

But the lead prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), said:  “I did not go against my Lordship’s order because no such order for specific number of pages for written address was given by the court.

“We did not base our own address on our own formulation, but by the evidence given to the court.

“The question of whether any money was seen in any place is not the case of the prosecution. The second defendant admitted that monies were withdrawn and taken to him (Jang).

“What was he (Jang) doing with N5 billion as governor between January and May 2015? It’s so clear that they have no answer to the prosecution’s case and at the end of the day, justice will prevail.”

Odey, in his address also urged the court to dismiss the prosecution’s case, insisting that his client did nothing wrong to warrant his prosecution.

Justice Dabup then adjourned the case for ruling, saying: “The ruling for this case will be at a date to be communicated.”