$2.1bn arms probe: Metuh implicated Jonathan, EFCC tells court
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC,
yesterday, told an Abuja High Court sitting at Maitama,
that the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, destroyed his
“confessional statement” upon realizing that it directly
linked former President Goodluck Jonathan to the alleged
illegal diversion of funds meant for the procurement of
arms.
The anti-graft agency made the disclosure after it re-
arraigned the embattled spokesman of the PDP on an
amended three-count charge bordering on destruction of
evidence, mischief and obstruction of justice, contrary to
sections 166 and 326 of the Penal Code Act, and section
38(2) of the EFCC Act, 2004.
At the resumed hearing on the matter yesterday, EFCC
brought one of its lead investigators, Mr. Junaid S’aid, to
testify before the Chief Judge of the High Court, Justice
Ishaq Bello who is presiding over Metuh’s trial.
The witness who was led in evidence by the prosecuting
counsel, Mr. Sylvanus Tahir, told the court that he is a
member of a Special Task Force Team that received and
investigated the petition that led to the arrest of the
erstwhile National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo
Dasuki, retd.
He said the petition which was filed from the office of the
NSA in January this year, alleged that Metuh, through his
company, Destra Investment Limited, received
N400million from Dasuki.
The fund was said to have been electronically transferred
from an account the Office of the NSA operated with the
Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, into account no.
0040437573, which Metuh’s firm opened with Diamond
Bank Plc.
The witness told the court that investigation by his team
revealed that the transfer was done without any contract
approval.
He said upon the realization that there was no basis for
the transaction, his team, on January 5, paid an
unscheduled visit to the residence of Metuh at Prince and
Princess Estate, Abuja, and subsequently invited him for
questioning.
S’aid told the court that Metuh honoured the invitation
and was interrogated by six EFCC operatives, namely,
Ibrahim Musa, Michael Wetkas, Bello Umar, David Nkpe,
Bello Adama and Eucharia Ibrahim, after which he
volunteered a statement to the commission. He
maintained that Metuh had in his statement, disclosed
that the N400million he received from the NSA had the
approval of ex-President Jonathan.
The witness said: “My Lord, when he concluded writing
his statement which was on four sheets of the EFCC
statement form, I collected the statement and read over it,
I then handed the statement over to my superiors Musa
and Wetkas.
“When I was handing over the statement, the defendant
said he was surprised that he had written that much and
that he felt he had given too much information.
“Because of the comment, I was worried so I gave him
the statement sheets, one after the other for
endorsement. After endorsing the first and second
sheets, to my surprise, the defendant tore the third sheet.
“My lord, he suddenly tore the statement sheet into
pieces, in great shock and surprise I stood up, I asked
him why he did what he did?
“He replied that he did that because he was no longer
willing to give the information on that statement sheet. I
then requested the pieces of the statement, he declined
and attempted to put them in his pocket, I then cautioned
him and told him to respect himself but he insisted that he
was going to dispose the torn sheet.
“I persuaded him to handover the torn sheet and brought
one plain paper before him, he poured the pieces on the
plain sheet, my other colleagues were there looking at us
in surprise as well.
“He furthered tore them into pieces, saying only in the
movies would this be recovered. At that point I poured the
pieces in the commission’s transparent polythene bag as
exhibit and made entry of the incident into the EFCC’s
incident duty station diary as well as EFCC’s pocket
notebook.
“Later in the day he requested to make additional
statement, which he made, wrote his name and signed
but declined to make any other statement on the torn
paper.”
The witness maintained that the third sheet that was
destroyed by Metuh revealed that he received the money
from Dasuki to boost campaign activities of the PDP with
a view to ensuring the re-election of ex-President
Jonathan in the 2015 general election.
Metuh was also alleged to have admitted that he used
part of the fund to take care of his personal needs.
Meantime, the court, yesterday, admitted into evidence,
EFCC’s incident duty station diary, EFCC’s pocket
notebook and the pieces of Metuh’s torn statement.
Following demand by the defence lawyer, Dr. Onyechi
Ikpeazu, SAN, Justice Bello, yesterday, directed EFCC to
produce the original copy of the full statement of the
witness.
Ikpeazu who noted that the witness never mentioned the
issue of destruction of statement in the entire statement
he made on oath, challenged the fact that the copy of the
statement the prosecuting counsel made available to him
yesterday was photocopied.
Further hearing on the case has been adjourned till March
16.
Metuh who is equally answering to another seven-count
charge before the federal high court in Abuja, was earlier
granted bail by Justice Bello to the tune of N300m with
two sureties in like sum.
yesterday, told an Abuja High Court sitting at Maitama,
that the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, destroyed his
“confessional statement” upon realizing that it directly
linked former President Goodluck Jonathan to the alleged
illegal diversion of funds meant for the procurement of
arms.
The anti-graft agency made the disclosure after it re-
arraigned the embattled spokesman of the PDP on an
amended three-count charge bordering on destruction of
evidence, mischief and obstruction of justice, contrary to
sections 166 and 326 of the Penal Code Act, and section
38(2) of the EFCC Act, 2004.
At the resumed hearing on the matter yesterday, EFCC
brought one of its lead investigators, Mr. Junaid S’aid, to
testify before the Chief Judge of the High Court, Justice
Ishaq Bello who is presiding over Metuh’s trial.
The witness who was led in evidence by the prosecuting
counsel, Mr. Sylvanus Tahir, told the court that he is a
member of a Special Task Force Team that received and
investigated the petition that led to the arrest of the
erstwhile National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo
Dasuki, retd.
He said the petition which was filed from the office of the
NSA in January this year, alleged that Metuh, through his
company, Destra Investment Limited, received
N400million from Dasuki.
The fund was said to have been electronically transferred
from an account the Office of the NSA operated with the
Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, into account no.
0040437573, which Metuh’s firm opened with Diamond
Bank Plc.
The witness told the court that investigation by his team
revealed that the transfer was done without any contract
approval.
He said upon the realization that there was no basis for
the transaction, his team, on January 5, paid an
unscheduled visit to the residence of Metuh at Prince and
Princess Estate, Abuja, and subsequently invited him for
questioning.
S’aid told the court that Metuh honoured the invitation
and was interrogated by six EFCC operatives, namely,
Ibrahim Musa, Michael Wetkas, Bello Umar, David Nkpe,
Bello Adama and Eucharia Ibrahim, after which he
volunteered a statement to the commission. He
maintained that Metuh had in his statement, disclosed
that the N400million he received from the NSA had the
approval of ex-President Jonathan.
The witness said: “My Lord, when he concluded writing
his statement which was on four sheets of the EFCC
statement form, I collected the statement and read over it,
I then handed the statement over to my superiors Musa
and Wetkas.
“When I was handing over the statement, the defendant
said he was surprised that he had written that much and
that he felt he had given too much information.
“Because of the comment, I was worried so I gave him
the statement sheets, one after the other for
endorsement. After endorsing the first and second
sheets, to my surprise, the defendant tore the third sheet.
“My lord, he suddenly tore the statement sheet into
pieces, in great shock and surprise I stood up, I asked
him why he did what he did?
“He replied that he did that because he was no longer
willing to give the information on that statement sheet. I
then requested the pieces of the statement, he declined
and attempted to put them in his pocket, I then cautioned
him and told him to respect himself but he insisted that he
was going to dispose the torn sheet.
“I persuaded him to handover the torn sheet and brought
one plain paper before him, he poured the pieces on the
plain sheet, my other colleagues were there looking at us
in surprise as well.
“He furthered tore them into pieces, saying only in the
movies would this be recovered. At that point I poured the
pieces in the commission’s transparent polythene bag as
exhibit and made entry of the incident into the EFCC’s
incident duty station diary as well as EFCC’s pocket
notebook.
“Later in the day he requested to make additional
statement, which he made, wrote his name and signed
but declined to make any other statement on the torn
paper.”
The witness maintained that the third sheet that was
destroyed by Metuh revealed that he received the money
from Dasuki to boost campaign activities of the PDP with
a view to ensuring the re-election of ex-President
Jonathan in the 2015 general election.
Metuh was also alleged to have admitted that he used
part of the fund to take care of his personal needs.
Meantime, the court, yesterday, admitted into evidence,
EFCC’s incident duty station diary, EFCC’s pocket
notebook and the pieces of Metuh’s torn statement.
Following demand by the defence lawyer, Dr. Onyechi
Ikpeazu, SAN, Justice Bello, yesterday, directed EFCC to
produce the original copy of the full statement of the
witness.
Ikpeazu who noted that the witness never mentioned the
issue of destruction of statement in the entire statement
he made on oath, challenged the fact that the copy of the
statement the prosecuting counsel made available to him
yesterday was photocopied.
Further hearing on the case has been adjourned till March
16.
Metuh who is equally answering to another seven-count
charge before the federal high court in Abuja, was earlier
granted bail by Justice Bello to the tune of N300m with
two sureties in like sum.
