Aisha Malkohi, also known as Ummitah, Arab Money, and her husband Abubakar Mahmoud are accused of defrauding the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) out of N410.5 million.
The EFCC arraigned Ms. Malkohi before the Kano State High Court in Kano, while her husband is allegedly out of control, according to a statement the commission made on Monday.
The defendant was charged on five counts of theft of money totaling NN410,518,000, according to EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale.
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She entered a not guilty plea in front of trial judge Aisha Mahmud after the charges were read to her.
Following a petition by two petitioners, Farida Ibrahim and Ibrahim Mohammed Abdulrahman, who claimed that the defendant conspired with her spouse and defrauded them of their money, the defendant was taken into custody by the EFCC in Kano.
Under the pretence of providing them with 64 automobiles, gold, electronics, and kitchen equipment from Saudi Arabia, she is accused of carrying out the fraud.
After receiving the petition, the commission acted quickly and carried out a comprehensive investigation, which led to the discovery that the defendant had amassed N410,518,000 through her husband’s Zenith Bank account and the bank accounts of her company, Golden Grass Hill International Ltd.
The EFCC claims that additional research showed that the defendant and her husband—who is still at large—diverted the funds into multiple bank accounts.
The EFCC claimed in one of the charges that the pair occasionally obtained the sum of 225,259,000 belonging to Farida Ibrahim in Kano, Kano State, between January 6 and December 16, 2022, and deposited it into a bank account ostensibly for the purchase and delivery of 64 automobiles from Saudi Arabia. The money was purportedly received by the couple into an account at Zenith Bank under the name Abubakar Sadiq Mahmoud, despite their knowledge that the account was fraudulently opened.
EFCC The Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006, punishes the couple under Section 1(3) for their actions, which are against Sections 1(a) and (b).
When the five counts were read to her, she entered a not guilty plea to each of them.
Zarami Mohammed, the EFCC’s attorney, asked the court to set a trial date in light of her plea.
However, G.I. Abubakar, the defence attorney, filed a bail request on his client’s behalf. The prosecuting attorney objected to the bail request.
The trial judge then postponed making a decision on the bail motion until December 15th.
In addition, she placed the defendant under EFCC detention until the outcome of her bail request was decided.
