How N1.2bn cash was given to Obanikoro – Witness reveals in court

On Monday, Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, presented a fresh witness, Damola Otuyalo, former Head of Cash and Transit, Diamond Bank PLC, who told Justice Nnamdi Dima of the Federal High Court, sitting in Maitama, Abuja, how a former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, was handed over the sum of NI.2Billion cash.

At the last trial, Abiodun Agbele, an aide of the former governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, narrated how he coordinated the movement of N1.2 billion slush fund in the build-up to the Ekiti governorship election in 2014.

While being led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Wahab Shittu, Otuyalo gave a vivid account of how the alleged sum was moved out of the local wing of the Lagos Airport and eventually handed over to Obanikoro.

According to Otuyalo, they arranged 65 big bags of money. He said they waited for some time before they could be able to off-load the cash from the aircraft. The witness also said that his director called him on phone and asked him to hand over the cash to Mr Musiliu Obanikoro.

A copy of the instruction given to him by his director to deliver the cash to the defendant was shown to the witness and he identified it. It was tenderend, admitted in evidence and marked as exhibit AA13.

The matter was thereafter adjourned to October 4, 2019, for continuation of trial.