Court rejects key evidence in Dasuki’s N33.2bn trial

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on Friday rejected key reveals the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) offered to show its N33.2billion fraud expenses in opposition to former National Security Adviser (NSA) Sambo Dasuki and his co-defendant.

The rejected reveals have been seven extra-judicial statements attributed to Mr Dasuki’s co-defendant, Aminu Baba-Kusa. The EFCC took the statements when Mr Baba-Kusa was in its custody in 2015.

Trial choose Charles Agbaza rejected the seven extra-judicial statements in a ruling it delivered after practically eight months of a trial-within-trial that focussed on the admissibility of the statements.

Mr Agbaza dominated that the statements “failed to comply with Sections 15(4) and 17(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.”

It is unclear but how essential the rejected statements are to the prosecution’s case.

The choose dominated that they may not be used in the case as a result of the EFCC failed to supply “credible evidence that the seven statements complied with the provisions of the ACJA.”

Mr Baba-Kusa is a businessman and retired Group Executive Director (GED), Business Development of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Mr Dasuki and Mr Baba-Kusa are going through a joint trial for alleged diversion of N33.2 billion in arms and safety funds entrusted to the NSA workplace.

The EFCC is prosecuting them alongside Mr Baba-Kusa’s corporations, Acacia Holdings Limited and Reliance Referral Hospital Limited, which allegedly acquired a part of the suspicious funds from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) underneath Mr Dasuki’s supervision.

The trial has lasted over a decade, struggling spells of setbacks and adjournments that stalled its progress.

EFCC needed to re-arraign the defendants in March final yr after the case was reassigned to the present trial choose, Mr Agbaza, kicking off afresh after about 10 years of a sophisticated run.

They denied the costs once more, as they beforehand did earlier than the previous choose.

The predominant trial paused once more on 14 January, when the EFCC tried to tender Mr Baba-Kusa’s statements as evidence by way of its first prosecution witness offered to date in the principle trial.

The choose ordered the trial-within-trial to check Mr Baba-Kusa’s declare, and the sub-trial commenced on 24 February.

Details of trial-within-trial

Mr Baba-Kusa’s lawyer objected to the admissibility of the statements on the grounds that they have been obtained underneath duress, prompting the choose to order a trial-within-trial to establish the voluntariness of the statements.

The defence argued {that a} assertion made by somebody whereas being held in the underground cell of the EFCC couldn’t be stated to have been freely made.

He additionally stated there was no compliance with Section 15(4) and 17 (2) of the ACJA 2015.

The EFCC referred to as three witnesses, all its investigators, in the course of the trial-within-trial who testified in regards to the circumstances surrounding how Mr Baba-Kusa’s statements have been taken.

Salihu Kadir stated Mr Baba-Kusa voluntarily wrote his extrajudicial statements with none type of coercion.

Mr Kadir stated that there was a CCTV digital camera recording, however he urged the courtroom to notice that it was finished about 10 years in the past and was not obligatory underneath the legislation.

On 24 February, Halima Kazeem, an assistant commandant 1 on the EFCC, stated he was handled properly in custody in 2015.

Similarly, Michael Adariku, an assistant commander 2 on the EFCC, refuted the suggestion of detaining him in an underground cell throughout investigations in 2015.

When Mr Baba-Kusa, who testified in June as the only defence witness in the trial-within-trial, confirmed that he wrote the assertion and that cautionary phrases have been administered to him earlier than writing them.

Why the courtroom rejected the seven statements

However, on Friday, the choose rejected the statements as a result of there was no audio-visual recording.

He dominated that the “aim of audio-visual recording is for the court to see the circumstances” that happened when the statements have been taken, “whether voluntarily,” and never coerced by the prosecution.

EFCC’s lawyer Oluwaleke Atolagbe requested a duplicate of the ruling to check to determine the prosecution’s subsequent steps, which might be an enchantment or restrate

Thereafter, the choose adjourned the case till 13 November.

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Prosecution’s case to date

In the substantive trial, the EFCC has referred to as one prosecution witness, Mr Adarikun, as the primary prosecution witness.

Mr Adarikun narrated how N2.2 billion meant for election safety was allegedly diverted from the NSA workplace underneath the management of Mr Dasuki.

So far, he has testified about transfers from the Office of the National Security Adviser’s account, with the approval of Mr Dasuki, to Mr Babba-Kusa, who allegedly used the proceeds to purchase properties and foreign currency in euros and {dollars}.

The decade-old trial suffered a number of adjournments in its early years, largely because of the State Security Services (SSS) refusing to launch Mr Dasuki on bail in defiance of a number of courtroom orders.

Mr Dasuki served as NSA between 2012 and 2015, in the warmth of Boko Haram assaults in Nigeria’s North-east, underneath the administration of then-President Goodluck Jonathan.

The N33.2 billion fraud trial is among the a number of instances the EFCC filed in the aftermath of the scandal of alleged diversion of funds meant for procurement of arms to agency up the Nigerian navy’s offensive in opposition to Boko Haram terrorists between 2014 and 2015.

An audit panel, established by President Muhammadu Buhari following his 2015 election victory, discovered that roughly $2 billion for arms procurement was unaccounted for. These funds have been managed by the NSA, led by Mr Dasuki.

Mr Dasuki can also be standing trial alongside former Sokoto State Governor Attahiru Bafarawa, his son Sagir Bafarawa, former Minister of State for Finance Bashir Yuguda, and Dalhatu Investment Limited for N4.6 billion arms procurement fraud.

The expenses accused them of diverting N4.6 billion from the NSA workplace’s account. The cash was stated to be meant for the procurement of arms to agency up the offensive in opposition to Boko Haram terrorists between 2014 and 2015.