Eniola Akinkuotu, Abuja
The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission has arrested four domestic
servants, including a driver and a
houseboy, whose names were used to
open bank accounts for Mrs Dame
Patience Jonathan, the wife of former
President Goodluck Jonathan.
Sources within the anti-graft agency said
on Sunday that the companies’ accounts
were opened at Skye Bank.
The companies are Pluto Property and
Investment Company Limited, Seagate
Property Development and Investment
Company Limited, Trans Ocean Property
and Investment Company Limited and
Globus Integrated Service Limited.
The four companies’ accounts, which
have since been frozen by the EFCC,
have a balance of about $15m while
another account, which bears Patience
Jonathan’s name, has $5m.
Mr. Sammie Somiari, who deposed to an
affidavit on behalf of the ex-President’s
wife, said the former First Lady was the
owner of the money in the accounts.
She had revealed that she gave millions
of dollars to the then Special Adviser to
the President on Domestic Affairs,
Waripamowei Dudafa, to open accounts
for her.
Somiari, however, claimed that Dudafa
opened five accounts for Patience and
that only one of the accounts was in her
name, while the other four were opened
in the names of companies belonging to
Dudafa.
A detective at the EFCC, however,
revealed that Dudafa used his domestic
servants’ names to open the four other
accounts and then deposited the money
into the accounts.
The operative added, “We were
investigating Dudafa when we stumbled
on those four companies’ domiciliary
accounts opened at Skye Bank with a
balance of about $15m. On further
investigation, we were able to identify
the directors of the companies.
“When we detained the directors, we
found out that they were Dudafa’s
domestic servants. One of them was a
houseboy while another one was a
driver. Their photographs were used in
opening the accounts and their
signatures were forged.
“We found out that these domestic
servants were completely innocent
because they had no access to the
accounts. We have since released them.
The sole signatory to the accounts was
Patience Jonathan and she was issued
with a special card, which is accepted
worldwide. She has a separate account,
which was opened in her name and has a
balance of $5m.”
The detective said a lawyer, Amajuoyi
Briggs, who allegedly helped Dudafa to
perpetrate the fraud, would also be
arraigned.
It was learnt that two Skye Bank
executives, Demola Bolodeoku and Dipo
Oshodi, who helped Dudafa to open the
accounts on March 22, 2010, were also
being investigated.
The detective added, “This is a clear case
of fraud and there is no way the bank
officials will say they did not know what
was going on. They are under
investigation and those found culpable
will be arraigned.”
The EFCC operative said he could not
immediately confirm if the transaction
was reported to the Nigeria Financial
Intelligence Unit.
He explained that the commission had
discovered a trend which politicians used
in laundering and concealing funds,
saying it was becoming more rampant
due to the operation of the Bank
Verification Number which links all
accounts owned by an individual.
He added, “What we have noticed is that
in order to conceal funds, what
politicians and top civil servants do is to
open bank accounts in the name of
family or friends and then make
themselves the sole signatory to the
account.
“Don’t forget that we traced about 17
bank accounts to the immediate past
Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal
Alex Badeh (retd.).
“Often times, they do this in connivance
with bank officials and that is why the
EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, has
said henceforth, whenever we are
investigating a bank official, we will
probe the entire bank as well because
these officials usually act under the
instruction of their superiors.”
Jonathan’s wife has, however, sued Skye
Bank for freezing her bank accounts and
giving the EFCC vital information about
her finances.
She also wants the court to order Skye
Bank to pay her damages in the sum of
N200m for what she termed a violation
of her right to own personal properties
under Section 44 of the 1999
Constitution.

Source: WWW.punchng.com

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