Convicted pension thief, Mr John
Yakubu Yusufu, Monday, challenged the powers of the Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission, EFCC, to prosecute him over his alleged complicity in
another N300million fraud.
Yusufu, who was earlier handed a
light sentence by trial Justice Abubakar Thalba of an Abuja High Court at Gudu,
after he confessed that he conspired with six other civil servants and stole
N23billion from the Police Pension Fund, Monday, insisted that the Abuja
Division of the Federal High Court has no jurisdiction to hear the fresh case
brought against him by the anti-graft agency.
The accused person who was a
former Director of Pension in the Police Affairs Ministry, is answering to a
4-count criminal charge.
In the fresh charge, he was said
to have on or about February 14, 2012, knowingly failed to make full disclosure
of his assets and liability in the Declaration of Assets Form he filled and
submitted, and equally failed to declare that he owns a company known as AY-A
Global Services Limited.
EFCC told the court that he used
the name of the company and lodged in a fixed deposit account with the Zenith
Bank, the sum of N250million, N10million in a fixed deposit account with the
First Bank of Nigeria Plc, and another N29 million which he was said to have
instructed one Danjuma Mele to lodge in his company account in the name of
Jidag Technical Services Ltd with Diamond Bank.
The offence according to the
prosecuting agency is punishable under section 27 (3) of the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment e.t.c) Act Cap E1 2004.
However, the accused person
through his lawyer Mr F.C Ibeh, urged the trial court to either hands-off his
trial of quash the entire charge for want of jurisdiction.
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