The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Gombe Zonal Command, on Tuesday, February 22, 2022, secured the conviction of a former Minister of Water Resources in the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Sarah Ochekpe and two others, Evan Leo Sunday Jitong and Raymond Dabo, deputy director for Goodluck/Sambo 2015 election campaign and former Acting Chairman of PDP, Plateau State respectively.
The Ochekpe and two others are expected to spend 6 years in prison following their alleged involvement in the N450 million fraud.
Recall that the EFCC, Gombe Zonal office had on Monday, January 22, 2018 arraigned the trio of Sarah Ochekpe, Evan Leo Sunday Jitong and Raymond Dabo before Justice H. M. Kurya of the Federal High Court ,Jos, Plateau State, on two-count charge bordering on money laundering.
They were alleged to have received the sum of N450million out of N23billion brought to a Bank through cash and wire transfer by some oil companies and former Petroleum Resources Minister, Diezani Alison Madueke, to influence electorates and the outcome of 2015 Presidential Election.
Investigations showed that after receiving the money in their custody, the Bank’s headquarters used its state branches to channel the distribution of the election loot through CBN to individual states of the Federation.
Specifically, on March 26, 2015, the sum of N450million was withdrawn from CBN by the Bank Jos main branch and it was handed over to the defendants in cash after they signed for collection.
Though the defendants claimed that they handed over the money to late Senator Gyang Pwajok, the Plateau State PDP Governorship candidate in 2015, they failed to provide any evidence to support their claim.
Count one of the charge reads:
“That you, SARAH RINGIM OCHEKPE, EVAN LEO SUNDAY JITONG, RAYMOND DABO and MRS DIEZANI ALISON MADUEKE ( NOW AT LARGE) sometimes in March 2015 at Jos, Plateau state of Nigeria within the Jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, without going through the Financial Institution, did conspire amongst yourselves to accept cash payment of the sum of Four Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N450,000,000.00) from MRS. DIEZANI ALISON MADUEKE through Fidelity Bank Plc which sum exceeded the amount authorised by Law and thereby committed an offence contrary to the provisions of Section 18 (a), Section 16 (1) (d) of the Money Laundering (prohibition) Act 2012 (as amended) and Punishable under Section 16 (2) (b) of the same Act.
The anti-graft agency, however, on Tuesday, February 22, 2022, secured the conviction of Sarah Ochekpe, Evan Leo Sunday Jitong and Raymond Dabo. The trio are to spend at least six years in prison.
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