Court freezes three accounts belonging to Lagos govt over alleged N9.9bn fraud

Justice Chuka Obiozor of a Federal High Court in Lagos, on Tuesday, ordered that three bank accounts said to belong to the Lagos State Government be frozen over an alleged fraud of N9.9bn.

The three affected bank accounts are domiciled in three top generation banks, also numbered 5617984012, 0060949275 and 1011691254, respectively.

Specifically, the Judge ordered the freezing of the bank accounts following an ex parte application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The anti graft agency had asked the judge to freeze the accounts pending the conclusion of the investigation and possible prosecution of the Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Chief of Staff to the Governor of Lagos State, Adewale Adesanya, for money laundering.

In an affidavit filed in support of the ex parte application, a member of the EFCC investigating team, Kungmi Daniel, said the commission discovered “a huge inflow of N9,927,714,443.29” from the state accounts into one of the bank accounts opened on September 17, 2018 during the administration of former governor Akinwunmi Ambode and operated by Adesanya.

Daniel said the schedule of the bank account showed how Adesanya and the other signatories to the account made fraudulent transfers from the accounts of the Lagos State Government and dissipated the funds housed in the said accounts.

“The trend in the account is that the account always witnessed huge inflow from Lagos State Government in the above-scheduled accounts managed by the respondent (Adesanya),” the investigator said.

The EFCC prayed the court to grant it an order to temporarily attach and take over the accounts to enable it to conclude its investigations.

“There have been concerted efforts and attempts to dissipate the contents of the accounts listed in the schedule to this application.

“Without freezing the nominated accounts and temporarily forfeiting the money to the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, there is no way the fraud being perpetrated using the scheduled accounts can be stopped,” the EFCC said.

Justice Obiozor granted the prayers of the EFCC, while further proceedings have been adjourned till August 9, 2019.