A former Acting Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), Anamekwe Nwabuoku, who is standing trial for alleged misappropriation of ₦1.96 billion, has appealed to the Federal High Court in Abuja to grant him time to negotiate a settlement with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Nwabuoku, who is facing a nine-count charge, made the request after EFCC’s lawyer, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, informed the court that the prosecution was ready to proceed with five additional witnesses.
Although he was represented at the hearing by his lawyer, Isidore Udenko, the defendant personally addressed the court, stating that he had hired a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) to facilitate an out-of-court settlement with the anti-graft agency.
Udenko noted that the trial had commenced only after the defendant’s previous attempt to reach an agreement with the EFCC fell through.
On his part, EFCC’s counsel, Iheanacho, SAN, stated that the prosecution was not against the request.
“Even though our five witnesses are in court and we are ready to go on with the trial, however, if the request of the defendant will meet the justice of the case, we will not be opposing,” he said.
Following the development, Justice James Omotosho adjourned the case to March 13 for either a settlement report or continuation of the trial.
Background of the Case
Nwabuoku was appointed in May 2022 to temporarily oversee the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) after the suspension and subsequent trial of the then AGF, Ahmed Idris, who was accused of laundering ₦80.2 billion in public funds.
However, EFCC later alleged that Nwabuoku had also engaged in financial misconduct before his appointment. Investigations led to his removal in July 2022, just weeks after taking office.
He was subsequently charged alongside a Director in the Federal Civil Service, Felix Nweke.
However, Nweke was later removed from the case after agreeing to testify against Nwabuoku.
Details of the Charges
In the amended charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/240/24, the EFCC accused Nwabuoku of violating Section 18 of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 (as amended by Act No. 1 of 2012), which is punishable under Section 15(3) of the same law.
The court previously heard how the defendant allegedly used four different companies to divert public funds amounting to ₦1.96 billion.
His former co-defendant, Nweke, testifying as the second prosecution witness (PW-2), revealed that in an attempt to cover up the fraud, the stolen funds were deposited into bank accounts controlled by one Gideon Joseph, who was listed as the sole signatory.
