A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Clement Onwuenwunor, yesterday faulted claims by music star Peter Okoye of P-Square in his statement to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The SAN told the Federal High Court in Lagos that the claims were made in a bid to mislead investigators in an ongoing fraud trial involving royalties and company finances.
The SAN, during a tense cross-examination session before Justice Alexander Owoeye, accused Peter of deliberate falsehood regarding his education, access to company funds, and royalty entitlements.
The defence counsel told the court that Peter claimed in his EFCC statement to be a graduate of the University of Abuja, whereas records show he dropped out at 100 level.
“Mr. P, on page A5 of your EFCC statement, you claimed to be a graduate. That is untrue. You dropped out at 100 level,” Onwuenwunor said pointedly.
Peter said: “I went to UNIABUJA, but that’s not why I’m here. I dropped out at 300 level and took a transcript to UST (University of Science and Technology), Port Harcourt.”
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Pressed further on whether he had any certificate or document to prove graduation from UST, Peter admitted, “No.”
The contradiction, along with his combative tone, drew the ire of Justice Owoeye, who was forced to caution him. His lawyer, M. K. Bashir, also had to intervene more than once.
Peter, in his testimony, had earlier testified that Jude Okoye’s wife, Ifeoma, owned 80 per cent of Northside Music Limited, while Jude held 20 per cent.
But the defence presented the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, registration certificate, showing that Jude Okoye holds 80 per cent, while his wife owns 20 per cent.
Confronted with this document in court, Peter admitted that his initial testimony was incorrect.
The defence also accused Peter of lying about not being a signatory to Northside Music Ltd’s accounts.
In his EFCC statement, Peter claimed Jude was the sole signatory and that he had no access.
However, Onwuenwunor presented a signed account mandate confirming Jude as a Category A signatory, while Peter and his twin brother, Paul Okoye, were both Category B signatories.
“This proves you had access to the accounts all along,” Onwuenwunor said, holding up the document before the judge.
The defence further tendered bank statements from Ecobank, admitted as Exhibit P, which detailed royalty payments from Lex Records via Mad Solutions Limited, the company in charge of managing P-Square’s music catalogue.
Peter had earlier told the EFCC that he was unaware of any royalty payments and had never received proceeds from them.
But the Ecobank statement showed consistent royalty transfers to the Northside Entertainment account from 2012 to 2017—proceeds which the defence insisted Peter shared from the beginning.
Onwuenwunor told the court that the inconsistencies in Peter’s statements were part of a broader effort to distort facts and mislead both the EFCC and the court.
Justice Owoeye adjourned to October 23 and November 10, 2025, for the continuation of cross-examination and trial.
