The Federal Government will on Tuesday arraign former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Mohammed Adoke (SAN) and six others before a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on charges of fraud, acceptance of gratification, among others.
Also named in the charge are: Rasky Gbinigie, A. Abubakar, Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited, shell Nigeria Ultra Deep Limited and Shell Nigeria Exploration Production Company Limited.
The charge marked: CR/151/2020 is one of two charges filed against Adoke and others by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on behalf of the Federal Government.
The second filed before the Federal High Court, with Adoke and Abubakar as the two defendants, is marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/39/2017.
In the first count of the charge pending before the High Court of the FCT, Adoke and others are accused of receiving gratification to allegedly carry out a fraudulent oil deal.
While serving as the AGF, Adoke was alleged to have mediated controversial agreements that ceded OPL 245 to Shell and Eni who in turn paid about $1.1 billion dollars to accounts controlled by an ex-convict and former petroleum minister, Dan Etete.
Etete, now at large was a former Petroleum Minister under the regime of General Sani Abacha.
In the charge dated 14th January, 2020 and filed on the 15th January, the federal government also charged Rasky Gbinigie, A. Abubakar, Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited, Shell Ultra Deep Limited and Shell Nigeria Exploration Production Limited.
Adoke was alleged to have, in August 2013 in Abuja while serving as a minister knowingly received United State Dollars equivalent of N300million which is reasonably suspected of having been unlawfully obtained and thereby committed offence punishable under Section 319A of the Penal Code, Cap. 532laws of the federation of Nigeria 1990.
Gbinigie is, in one of the counts, said to have conspired with Munamuna Seidougha (at large), Amaran Joseph (at large) and Dauzia Loya Etete (at large), sometime in 2013, in Abuja, dishonestly used as genuine the forged form CAC 7 and Board Resolution of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and the letter of resignation of one Mohammed Sani to open a Bank Account No. 2018288005 with First Bank of Nigeria Plc to receive the sum of $401,540,000.00.
They are said to have, by their action, committed an offence contrary to section 366 of the Penal Code and punishable under the same section of the Penal Code.
Adoke was, in count seven, alleged to have in September 2013 knowingly and unlawfully obtained the sum of US dollars equivalent to N367,318,800 and thereby committed an iffebce punishable under Section 319A of the Penal Code, Cap.532 laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990.
In the charge, Gbinigie, the company secretary of Malabu oil was said to have made false resignation letter signed by one Alhaji Hassan Hindu as having resigned from the Board of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited with intent to commute fraud.
Part of the charge reads:
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke, being a public servant at the material time, the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice of the Government of Nigeria, sometime inAugust 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court was in possession and custody of the sum of N300m reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained and thereby committed an offence an offence under section 319A of the Penal Code and punishable under the same section of the Penal Code.
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke, being a public servant at the material time, the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice of the Government of Nigeria, sometime in 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, accepted for yourself without consideration, the sum of N300m to broker the negotiation and signing of the Block 245 Resolution Agreement with Shell Nigeria Ultra Deep Limited, Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited and thereby committed an offence under section 119 of the Penal Code and Punishable under the same section of the Penal Code.
That you Rasky Gbinigie, Munamuna Seidougha (at large), Amaran Joseph (at large) and Dauzia Loya Etete (at large), sometime in 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, dishonestly used as genuine the forged form CAC 7 and Board Resolution of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and the letter of resignation of one Mohammed Sani, which you then knew to be forged documents to open a Bank Account No. 2018288005 to receive the sum of $401,540,000.00 and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 366 of the Penal Code and punishable under the same section of the Penal Code.
That you Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, Shell Nigeria Exploration Production Company Limited, Shell Nigeria Ultra Deep Limited, Nigeria AGIP Exploration Limited and Dauzia Loya Etete (at large), sometime in 2012, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, all aided Mohammed Bello Adoke to waive taxes due to the Federal Government of Nigeria by illegal means through the execution of the Block 245 Resolution Agreement between the Government of Nigeria with Shell Nigeria Ultra Deep Limited, Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited that you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 79 of the Penal Code and punishable under section 364 of the Penal Code.
That you Rasky Gbinigie, Munamuna Seidougha (at large), Amaran Joseph (at large) and Dauzia Loya Etete (at large), sometime in August 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, forged the resolution of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited which you filed along with Form CAC7 dated 2nd June 1998 at the Corporate Affairs Commission to remove one Mohammed Sanni as a shareholder of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited thereby committing an offence contrary as prescribed by section 363 of the Penal Code and punishable under section 364.
That you Rasky Gbinigie, Munamuna Seidougha (at large), Amaran Joseph (at large) and Dauzia Loya Etete (at large), sometime in August 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, all conspired to forge forms CAC7 and Board Resolution of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and that the same act was done in pursuance of the agreement and that you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 96 of the Penal Code and punishable under section 97 of the Penal Code.
That you Rasky Gbinigie, Munamuna Seidougha (at large), Amaran Joseph (at large) and Dauzia Loya Etete (at large), sometime in 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, dishonestly used as genuine the forged form CAC 7 and Board Resolution of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and the letter of resignation of one Mohammed Sani which you then knew to be forged documents to open a Bank Account No. 2018288005 to receive the sum of $401,540,000.00 and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 366 of the Penal Code and punishable under the same section of the Penal Code.
That you Rasky Gbinigie, Munamuna Seidougha (at large), Amaran Joseph (at large) and Dauzia Loya Etete (at large), sometime in 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, dishonestly used as genuine the forged form CAC 7 and Board Resolution of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and the letter of resignation of one Mohammed Sani which you then knew to be forged documents to open a Bank Account No. 3610042472 to receive the sum of $400,540,000.00 and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 366 of the Penal Code and punishable under the same section of the Penal Code.
The charge before the Federal High Court reads:
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke, sometime in September 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, accepted as payment the sum of United States Dollars equivalent to N300,000,000.00 from Abubakar Aliyu and you thereby committed an offence as specified under section 1 (a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 16 (2)(b) of the same Act.
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke, sometime in September 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, made a payment of a sum of United States Dollars equivalent to N367,318,800.00 to one Usman Mohammed Bello and you thereby committed an offence as specified under section 1(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 16 (2)(b) of the same Act.
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke, sometime in September 2013, in Abuja used the total sum of N300,000,000.00 when you knew that the said funds formed part of your unlawful activities to wit: payment of an amount exceeding stated threshold amounts outside a financial Institution and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 15 (2) (d) and punishable under section 15 (3) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended).
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke on or about the 13th of September 2013, in Abuja, did cause to be made a structured cash payment in 13 tranches of a sum of money totalling N50,000,000.00 into your Unity Bank Plc Account No. 0020153263, which sums you knew is part of an unlawful act, to wit: the payment of an amount exceeding stated threshold amounts outside a financial Institution, intending to conceal the origins of the said funds, contrary to section 15 (2 )(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 as amended and punishable under section 15 (3) of the same Act.
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke on or about the 16th of September 2013, in Abuja, did cause to be made a structured cash payment in 22 tranches of a sum of money totalling N80,000,000.00 ( into your Unity Bank Plc Account No. 0020153263, which sums you knew is part of an unlawful act, to wit: the payment of an amount exceeding stated threshold amounts outside a financial Institution, intending to conceal the origins of the said funds, contrary to section 15 (2 )(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 as amended and punishable under section 15 (3) of the same Act.
That you Mohammed Bello Adoke, sometime in September 2013, in Abuja used the total sum of N367,318,800,.00 when you knew that the said funds formed part of your unlawful activities to wit: payment of an amount exceeding stated threshold amounts outside a financial Institution and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 15 (2) (d) and punishable under section 15 (3) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended).
That you Aliyu Abubakar, sometime in September 2013, in Abuja made a payment of the sum of United States Dollars equivalent to N300,000,000.00 to Mohammed Bello Adoke and you thereby committed an offence as specified under section 1(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 16 (2)(b) of the same Act.
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