Ahmed Idris, the temporarily suspended Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), willingly returned nearly $900,000 in cash, a witness said in court on Wednesday in Maitama.
The recovered money, according to the witness, was allegedly taken from public coffers by the troubled AGF.
According to The Nation, Idris is on trial for allegedly misusing N109 billion in public monies while in charge of them.
The court also heard how certain top government officials split N84.7 billion that was seized from the $2.2 billion owed to the nine oil-producing states.
While giving testimony at the trial of Idris and three other defendants, Hayatudeen Ahmed, an EFCC officer, disclosed the information.
The suspended accountant-general is being tried on a 14-count charge of theft and criminal breach of trust amounting to N109 billion, along with his former technical assistant, Godfrey Olusegun Akindele, a director in the Office of the AG-F, Mohammed Kudu Usman, and a company connected to Idris, Gezawa Commodity Market and Exchange Limited.
Rotimi Jacobs introduced Ahmed, the first witness for the prosecution, as evidence (SAN).
He provided specifics on how his team looked into a petition in which Idris was charged of abusing his position and jeopardizing the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIVMIS), among other government platforms.
When Idris was faced with the truth, the witness claimed, “he (Idris) returned $900,000, less $100 ($899,900), voluntarily, and it has since been an exhibit in the case.
He said that so far, N32 billion has been recovered out of the N84.7 billion that was distributed among select government employees.
In addition, the witness detailed how Idris reportedly employed his former assistant, Akindele, as a consultant to disburse N84.3 billion out of the N84.7 billion.
He said that Akindele afterwards handed Idris N4.2b as thanks for hiring him as the consultant to manage the money distribution.
The witness stated: “Investigation started as soon as our staff was given the petition.
We sent letters to banks, the CAC, and other governmental organizations.
The fourth defendant, Gezawa Commodity Market and Exchange Ltd., received various deposits totaling N280 million between 2019 and 2021 from a Baita Kura of B. I. Kura Enterprises, a bureau de change operator, according to a review of the bank papers we acquired.
In addition, the witness detailed how Idris reportedly employed his former assistant, Akindele, as a consultant to disburse N84.3 billion out of the N84.7 billion.
He said that Akindele afterwards handed Idris N4.2b as thanks for hiring him as the consultant to manage the money distribution.
The witness stated: “Investigation started as soon as our staff was given the petition.
We sent letters to banks, the CAC, and other governmental organizations.
The fourth defendant, Gezawa Commodity Market and Exchange Ltd., received various deposits totaling N280 million between 2019 and 2021 from a Baita Kura of B. I. Kura Enterprises, a bureau de change operator, according to a review of the bank papers we acquired.
“Baita was invited in light of this discovery.
In his statement, he acknowledged that the funds he sent to Idris, the first defendant, were gifts from Idris.
“We found that the first defendant had given the orders for the payments to be paid.
“We also learned through looking at other bank accounts that a certain architect, Mustapha Muktar of Marcs and Construction Ltd, got multiple payments totaling roughly N866 million from Baita Kura.
Based on this, we brought the architect Mustapha, who made a testimony and revealed that Baita handed him the money on the first defendant’s orders.
According to the witness, Mustapha allegedly told Idris that he wanted to utilize the funds to build the Gezawa Commodity Market and Exchange in Gezawa Town, Kano.
He said that his staff was made aware of the nine oil-producing states’ protests over the lack of deductions of 13% accrued to them from the Excess Crude Account (ECA).
“It was further learned that this agitation was submitted before the Post-mortem subcommittee of the Federation Account Allocation Committee,” the witness continued (FAAC).
“After deliberating on the proposal, the committee determined that the nine oil-producing states owed a total of nearly $2.2 billion.
Additionally, that over a 60-month period, deductions would be made for this amount.
“A total of 11.5 percent of the entire amount, or N84.7 billion, was put aside to help some public authorities process and grant the request.
Under the pretext of consulting, this was done.
“Olusegun Akindele & Co., a business owned by the second defendant (Akindele), provided its services for this reason.
The second defendant, Godfrey Olusegun Akindele, who was the first defendant’s technical assistant and the owner of Olusegun Akindele & Co. until recently, is a former employee of the AG-office. F’s
“Olusegun Akindele & Co. got a total of N84.3 billion, or 9.8 percent, minus taxes from the 11.5 percent that was originally set aside.
He received funds from the FAAC withheld Escrow account, which was managed by the first and third accused, and transferred them to his First Bank account (Idris and Usman).
“Mohammed Kudu Usman, a former director in the AG-office, F’s is the third defendant.
“We examined Olusegun Akindele & Co.’s statement of accounts after receiving it and discovered that, following the receipt of N84.3 billion, it was divided among five entities.
The Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) group was the first one, and Chris Akumas, a commissioner on the commission, represented them.
Out of 9.8%, it received 2.2%, for a total of N18.7 billion.
“After receiving the funds, the second defendant turned them into United States (U.S.) dollars and gave Chris Akumas the money on behalf of the group’s members.
The first defendant represented the second group, the accountant-general group, which received N18.1 billion, or 2.1%.
Also converted to dollars and given to the first defendant was some of this money.
The third defendant got from the second group money equivalent to around N1.8b in US currency.
“The third group earned 2.5 percent, or N21.4 billion, from the nine oil-producing states’ commissioners of finance.
The second defendant changed the same sum into dollars and sent Chris Akumas the money on behalf of the organization.
“There was the Abdulaziz Yari faction, led by Abdulazid Yari, a former governor of Zamfara State.
This group received N17.15 billion, or 2%, of the total.
“Payment to this group was paid to Fintes Consultancy Ltd., a business that Yari recommended.
Dollars were not used to pay for this.
According to the former governor Yari’s directions, it was moved to the company’s account.
The last group is the consultant’s group, which received around 1.04 percent, or N8.9 billion, of which N4.2 billion was converted to dollars and given to the first defendant as a thank-you gift for designating him as the consultant. About N4.6 billion went to the consultant.
“The second defendant accepted my invitation and spoke.
He acknowledged receiving and distributing the funds as I had said.
These money were also linked to the acquisition of residential and commercial properties in several areas of Minna in Niger State, the FCT, and Kano.
“Cash has been collected to date from the first, second, and third defendants totaling $2.7 million, minus $100.
N32b has been retrieved as of right now from the five groupings.
“$2.7 million from the accountant-general group was recovered, minus $100. Also taken from the group was N304m.
“In addition to the properties confiscated, another N50 million was recovered from the third defendant in this group.
The witness stated, “He repaid it in cash, which was accepted and registered as exhibit in this matter by the commission.
Although Chris Uche, Joe Abraham, Mohammed Ndayako, and Gordy Uche (all SANs), the defendants’ attorneys, protested, Justice Halilu Yusuf accepted the petition filed against Idris and Akindele’s firm’s financial accounts into evidence.
However, they disputed the defendants’ acceptance of their statements, arguing that they were gained through coercion and enticement.
Justice Yusuf decided to have a trial inside a trial at the request of the defense attorneys to determine whether the comments were voluntary or not.
He set a new date of January 30 for the trial inside a trial to begin.
