EFCC reveals Amosu diverted N22.1billion funds

Tosin Owobo, an investigator with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Tuesday told a Federal High Court in Lagos how the sum of N22.1 billion belonging to the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) was diverted to private companies.

Owobo narrated to the presiding judge, Justice Mohammed Idris while being led in evidence by the EFCC prosecuting counsel Mr Rotimi Oyedepo in the on-going trial of a former Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshall Adesola Amosu (Rtd.) and 10 others over an alleged N22.1 billion fraud.

Naija News gathered that Amosu was arraigned by the EFCC on June 29, 2016, arraigned alongside Air Vice Marshal Jacob Bola Adigun, Air Commodore Gbadebo Owodunni Olugbenga and eight other companies. The companies are listed as: Delfina Oil and Gas Ltd, Mcallan Oil And Gas Ltd, Hebron Housing and Properties Company Ltd, Trapezites BDC, Fonds and Pricey Ltd, Deegee Oil and Gas Ltd, Timsegg Investment Ltd and Solomon Health Care.

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Owobo said that investigations by his team revealed that a staff of Zenith Bank Plc, Mrs. Funke Osisanmi, executed all debit transactions on the NAF’s account based on the directive from Air Commodore Gbadebo.

“If debit were to be made from NAF account, she receive instructions from Air Commodore Gbadebo and debit the account following which she liaised with various Bureau De Change (BDC) operators for the conversion of the money to foreign currencies”, he said.

He added that the Bureau De Change involved in the transactions are; Lebol Oil and Gas, Judah Oil and Gas and Right Option Oil and Gas.

The witness said investigation showed that Mrs. Osisanmi after conversion, she usually hands over the foreign currencies to either Air Commodore Gbadebo or other officers of NAF.

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Owobo while giving a breakdown of the monies moved to some of the private companies from NAF account said: “The sum of N5.9 billion was moved to Delfina Oil and Gas Ltd, N6.1 billion was moved to Mcallan Oil And Gas Ltd, Trapezites BDC got N3.6 billion, N800 million was moved to Deegee Oil and Gas Ltd while N700 million was moved to Timsegg Investment Ltd. In all, about N21 billion was moved from NAF account to these companies and there were no contractual agreement or Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between these companies and NAF before these funds were transferred”.

He stated that the funds diverted to these companies were eventually used to purchase property in Nigeria and abroad for the service chiefs.

Owobo therefore, said: “We were able to recover some of the accounts that received funds from NAF. The 1st defendant (Amosu) also raised draft and refunded over N2 billion to government coffers. The property were traced and marked. We visited the properties in Nigeria and most of them have been handed over to the Asset Management Division of the EFCC after obtaining orders of interim forfeiture from court”.

The case has been adjourned till tomorrow for further hearing.