-$2bn arms deal:
ABUJA — The special team raised by the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe the disbursement of $2.2 billion arms contract deal in the office of the former National Security Adviser, yesterday, confronted the major suspects with evidence of their illicit transactions.
The 27-member task force, which has Ibrahim Magu as a member, spent most part of the day to grill the suspects and asked them to speak up on any aspect of the transactions where their names or those who allegedly fronted for them, appeared.
The extended questioning of the high profile suspects, our
correspondent learned, was to prepare the ground for their arraignment
this week.
However, Vanguard could not obtain a specific date of the
week when the suspects are likely to be docked and the specific charges
to be pressed against them.
It was gathered that the commission had outsmarted the key suspects
by first securing a court order to detain them beyond the stipulated
48-hour threshold, thereby making it more difficult for their lawyers to
secure their early release.
A top source said most of the suspects, who had earlier attempted to
deny their involvement in the arms deal, were dumbfounded when
confronted with concrete evidence of all the transactions they had made
in the office of the ex-NSA.
“Many of the suspects, who were claiming ignorance of collecting huge
sums of money from the office of the ex-NSA, were tongue tied when we
brought them to face each other. I think they will soon appear in court
to tell the world why they went to the ONSA to sign and collect huge
sums of public money that was not meant for the purposes they were
given,” an EFCC source said.
Dokpesi disagrees with earlier statement
Apparently to clear the name of their patriarch, the family of Daar
Communications owner, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, on Saturday, disagreed
with an earlier statement the company released claiming that it got the
$2.1 billion from the office of the ex-NSA for media and publicity work
for the 2015 election.
In the latest statement released, weekend, the family turned around
to say that the $2.1 billion was personally approved by former President
Goodluck Jonathan for a holding company owned by Dokpesi following a
private presentation by the owner to Jonathan.
The family also said that contrary to claims that the money was
collected in respect of promoting the People’s Democratic Party’s
campaign to win the 2015 polls, it was actually meant to showcase the
under reported achievements of President Jonathan’s government.
Vanguard learned last night that the EFCC was making
efforts to charge the suspects to court so as to free its holding
facilities for more suspects who are to be taken up for massive looting
of public funds in the last dispensation.
The cells of the anti-graft agency in Abuja are said to be almost
overwhelmed with suspects arrested and detained in connection with the
arms deals, for which the Presidency has vowed to press to a logical
conclusion to prove to Nigerians that many top Nigerians looted the
public treasury under the guise of buying arms and ammunition to fight
terrorism.
By Soni Daniel, Northern Region Editor
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