June 24, (THEWILL) – The Federal High Court, sitting in Lagos, has acquitted a former Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, of money laundering charges.
Justice Mohammed Liman acquitted Ikuforiji and his former Personal Assistant, Oyebode Atoyebi, of all 54 counts of charges brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The anti-graft agency had in 2012, arraigned the former Speaker and his aide on a 54-count charge of money laundering to the tune of N338.8 million.
It accused the defendants of conspiring to commit an illegal act of accepting cash payments in the aggregate sum of N338.8 million from the House of Assembly without going through a financial institution. He was further accused of using his position to misappropriate funds belonging to the Assembly.
The offence allegedly committed between April 2010 and July 2011, contravenes the provisions of Sections 15 (1d), 16(1d) and 18 of the Money Laundering Act, 2004 and 2011.
The former Speaker had told the court that the case arose from a petition written by an unknown person, alleging that he stole about N7 billion from the Lagos House of Assembly.
Pleading his innocence, the defendant had maintained that he was being prosecuted on a faceless petition.
Although the case has gone through various courts where the former Speaker had been acquitted, the EFCC appeal led to a fresh trial
The anti-graft agency had closed its fresh case since March 27, 2021, but defence counsel, Dele Adesina (SAN), opened his clients’ defence on May 4, 2023. However, the parties adopted their final addresses on May 17.
Delivering judgement, on Monday, Justice Liman held that the prosecution failed to discharge the burden of proof placed on it by the provisions of the law.
“Charging a person under a law that was non-existent at the time of an alleged offence runs foul of the law.
“The Money Laundering Prohibition Act of 2004/2011 requires clear evidence of intent and the actual act of laundering money. It is difficult to prove the offence of money laundering without the predicate offence; the prosecution has failed to prove this. The prosecution has not proved the offence of money laundering beyond a reasonable doubt.
“Consequently, the defendants are acquitted of all the allegations of money laundering levelled against them in courts two to 54 of the charge”, the court held.
