A prosecution witness in the trial of former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, has denied any knowledge of the defendant.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) charged Mamman at the Federal High Court, Abuja, with 12 counts of laundering over N33 billion while in office from 2019 m to 2023.
Count one of the amended Charge reads: “That you, Saleh Mamman (Male), sometime in 2019, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Court, whilst you were the Minister of Power conspired with other officials of your ministry and some private companies to indirectly convert the total sum of N33,804,830,503.73 through various private companies which sums you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of unlawful activity, to wit: criminal breach of trust in relation to the funds released for the Mambilla and Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant Projects by the Federal Government of Nigeria; and you thereby commit an offence contrary to Sections 18(a), 15(2)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as Amended), and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.”
Under cross-examination by defence counsel Mr. Femi Atteh (SAN), the ninth prosecution witness (PW9), Mr. Abdullahi Suleiman, recalled how he collected money from the Ministry of Power at different times and transferred same to Mamman.
Asked whether and how he knew the defendant, he denied any knowledge of the man.
On how he knew that the monies he collected and transferred were for Mamman, he said the EFCC told him.
When reminded that Saleh left office before he collected the last money and asked who he gave the money, he said that he gave it to the EFCC.
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Mamman was appointed Minister of Power on August 21, 2019 and left on September 1, 2021.
The 10th prosecution witness, Musbahu Idris, former Personal Assistant (PA) to the former Minister of Power, said he worked for about two years with Mamman.
He said he ceased to be PA to the former minister immediately after he left office in September 2021.
PW 10 said under cross-examination that he knows Mustapha Bida, a staff of the Accountant General Office and the Project Accountant of the Mambila and Zungeru Power Project.
He stated that he had been collecting monies from the Bureau De Change Operators (Abdullahi Suleiman and Maina Goje) from 2019 up to 2022 and 2023 on the instruction of Bida.
The witness informed the court that he had built two houses – one in Abuja, the other in Taraba.
He also said Bida bought him a car and he has not filed any Form with the Code of Conduct Bureau.
Musbahu said the former Minister denied instructing him to collect any money from Bida.
According to him, Mamman said he would not refund any money to EFCC because he did not receive any money from Bida.
The witness further informed the court that he had refunded N190,000,000.00 to the EFCC.
Another prosecution witness (PW 11), Maina Goje, informed the court that he is a business partner of Abdullahi Suleiman (PW9) and has been in the business of Bureau de Change for about 28 years now.
He said he had known Bida for about 20 years.
He said Bida asked him to get some company accounts where he would be sending him monies in Naira and he could convert to dollars, which he did.
He said most times Bida sends Musbahu Idris to collect the dollar equivalent or Idris would instruct him to transfer some of the funds to some designated bank accounts.
The case has been adjourned to March 4, 5, 18 and 19 for the cross-examination of Goje (PW11).