A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos on Friday discharged Senator Peter Nwaoboshi of the N322million money laundering charge filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke ruled that the agency failed to prove the elements of the offences for which it charged the lawmaker.
Nwaoboshi is a leader of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party, and represents Delta North in the Red Chamber of the National Assembly.
Also acquitted by the Court were the Senator’s two firms – Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd, and Suiming Electrical Ltd – on the same ground.
EFCC had arraigned the three defendants on a two-count charge marked FHC/L/117C/18., and alleged that the they committed the offence between May and June 2014, in Lagos.
They were arraigned in 2018 before Justice Mohammed Idris, who could not complete the case because he was later elevated to the Court of Appeal. The case was subsequently re-assigned to Justice Aneke, and the three accused were re-arraigned on October 5, 2018.
EFCC alleged that Senator Nwaoboshi acquired a property described as Guinea House, Marine Road, in Apapa Lagos, for the sum of N805million.
The prosecution argued that the Senator reasonably ought to have known that N322million out of the purchase sum formed part of proceeds of an unlawful act.
The sum was said to have been transferred to the vendors by order of Suiming Electrical Ltd, one of the Senator’s companies.
Suiming Electrical was alleged to have therefore on May 14, 2014, aided Nwaoboshi and Golden Touch to commit money laundering.
In his ruling, Justice Aneke held, among others, that the prosecution’s case collapsed because “bank officials were not called to testify.”
