Mambilla project: EFCC re-arraigns Agunloye over alleged N6bn fraud

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday re-arraigned a former Minister of Power and Steel, Dr Olu Agunloye before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on alleged infractions committee in the award of contract for construction of 3,960MW Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station in Taraba State.

The anti-graft agency re-arraigned the former, who has been standing trial before Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie, sitting at Apo, Abuja, on an amended seven-count charge bordering on forgery, disobeying presidential directive and gratification.

EFCC alleged in the charge, marked FCT/HC/CR/617/2023, that Agunloye awarded a contract for the Mambilla project on May 22, 2003, to Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited without any budgetary provision, approval and cash backing.

The commission also, among others alleged that the former minister received the total sum of N5.212million from Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited (SPTCL) and Leno Adesanya, through Jide Abiodun Sotinrin through Agunloye’s Guaranty Trust Bank account, for conveying the Federal Government’s approval for the construction of the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station in favour of SPTCL while serving as minister.

The former minister pleaded not guilty to a seven-count amended charge when read to him in the court.

Meanwhile, the second prosecution witness in the case (PW2), Adewale Agunbiade, a Compliance Officer with GT Bank but now with Jaiz Bank Plc, while being cross-examined by counsel for Agunloye, Adeola Adedipe SAN, told the court that he had no letter from GT Bank to Jaiz Bank to allow him to testify in the matter.

He added that there was no letter from Jaiz Bank permitting him to testify, while EFCC did not issue him with a witness summoned to testify in the case.

According to him, “There was no request letter from GT Bank to Jaiz Bank to allow me to testify in this case. The request was from EFCC.

“On the 28th of June 2024, my boss sent me a message following a message from EFCC to honour its invitation. There is no letter of release from Jaiz Bank. We don’t issue such letters.”

He told the court that he neither knew the former minister personally nor had any special interest in the case before the court, adding that despite not being an official of GT Bank, he was not surprised when EFCC invited him in May 2023 to come and volunteer his statement on the charge before the court.

Agunbiade told the court that when he informed EFCC that he had left GT Bank, he was told that he was the one who prepared the documents relating to the court’s proceedings.

Asked if he presented his identification card to the court to show that he is a staff member of Jaiz Bank, the PW2, who had given his evidence-in-chief on September 23, 2024, said he did not do that.

When asked by Adedipe to confirm from to court the bank statement of Jide Abiodun Sotinrin who paid money into Agunloye’s account On August 10, 2019, October 22, 2019 and November 13, 2019, respectively, earlier tendered as exhibited by the prosecution, the PW2 told the court that the transfer of money was from one individual customer of GT Bank to another individual customer of the same bank.

According to him, the transfer of N3.6 million by Sotinrin to Agunloye’s account did not reference that it was made on behalf of either Leno Adesanya or Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited.

He further told the court that the narration for the transfer of N1,121,000 by Sotinrin to the defendant did not state that it was on behalf of Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited.

He added that the sum of N500,000 transferred to the former minister by Sotunrin did not reference that it was from Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited or Leno Adesanya.

After the cross-examination of the witness, Justice Onwuegbuzie adjourned further hearing in the case to February 24.

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