By Deborah Onyofufeke
The Abuja Federal High Court yesterday dismissed alleged 715-million-naira money laundering charges against Kabiru Turaki, SAN, a former Minister of Special Duties and Inter-governmental Affairs, of the 16-count money laundering charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, lodged against him and three others.

Justice Inyang Ekwo dismissed the case as a no-case submission filed against the Defendants on the grounds that the charges were both illegal and unconstitutional coupled with the fact that the EFCC failed to provide evidence to back the allegations lodged against the Defendants

The trial was pronounced unconstitutional following the refusal of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to give effect to a letter by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to make case file in respect of the charges available to his office.
The court maintained that EFCC erred by ignoring and neglecting the AGF’s letter of April 4, 2020, which demanded for the case file for review in order to avoid malicious prosecution.

Justice Ekwo explained that any law enforcement agency that ignores or neglects the directive of the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, does so at its own jeopardy.

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The Judge invoked sections 105 of ACJA and 21, 23 of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2012 and 174 of the 1999 Constitution declares that the trial is unlawful, illegal, and null and void and struck it out.

Justice Ekwo held that under the 1999 Constitution and the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, the Chief Law Officer of the Federation has inherent powers to review any criminal charge, take over the trial and even terminate the charges as his office may seem fit.

It will be recalled that the former minister and his former Special Assistant, Sampson Okpetu, and two firms- Samtee Essentials Limited and Pasco Investment Limited were alleged to have conspired and looted public funds to the tune of about N715million, Turaki’s wife, Halima and one Abdullahi Maigwandu Bagudu, were said to have been involved in the subsequent laundering of the stolen funds outside the country.

According to the EFCC, about 185m of the looted funds were transferred to ABYS Motors Limited between September 19 to November 28, 2014, by late Haruna and the then Director of Procurement of the Ministry, Gambo Mu’azu.

The Defendants, who were arraigned before the court on May 4, 2020, pleaded not guilty to the charge.