The Court of Appeal in Lagos yesterday dismissed an appeal filed by wife of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Patience, over the temporary forfeiture of her $5.7million.
She had appealed against a ruling by the Federal High Court in Lagos which temporarily ordered the money’s forfeiture to the Federal Government.
The Court of Appeal upheld the temporary forfeiture order made by Justice Mojisola Olatoregun on April 26, last year.
She made the order based on an ex-parte application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) through its counsel Mr Rotimi Oyedepo.
The judge also ordered the temporary forfeiture N2,421,953,522.78 found in an Ecobank account numbered 2022000760 in the name of La Wari Furniture and Baths Ltd.
The commission said the money also belongs to Mrs Jonathan.
The Court of Appeal similarly dismissed an appeal by La Wari Funiture and Baths.
Through her lawyer, Chief Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN), Mrs Jonathan urged the Appeal Court to declare Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud Act unconstitutional for being in conflict with the Evidence Act and the 1999 Constitution.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Mojeed Owoade, the Court of Appeal held that the appeals lacked merit.
It upheld Oyedepo’s arguments and resolved the issues against the appellant.
The court upheld the constitutionality of Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud Act, which empowers the EFCC to apply for the forfeiture of property reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity to the Federal Government.
Justice Owoade held that the section was not in conflict with Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution which guarantees fair hearing to citizens.
Besides, the Justice added that Section 135 of the Evidence Act shifted the responsibility of proving how the appellant got the money to her.
“The section merely shifts the evidential burden of proof onto the appellant to disprove the facts raised by the respondent in its motion on notice for final forfeiture of the funds.
“To that extent, the provisions of Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud are neither in conflict with Section 135 (1) of the Evidence Act 2011 nor with Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution.
“There is nothing unusual or unconstitutional in Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Related Offences Act.
“The respondent placed sufficient materials before the court below to justify the grant of the ex-parte application.
“Having resolved the two issues in this appeal against the appellant, the appeal lacks merit and is accordingly dismissed. I make no order as to cost,” Justice Owoade held.
The appeal stalled the hearing of the EFCC’s motion for final forfeiture of the money.
The commission said it found the $5.7million in an account numbered 2110001712 with Skye Bank Plc in Mrs Jonathan’s name.
In an affidavit in support of the ex parte originating summons, an EFCC operative, Musbahu Yahaha Abubakar, said he was a member of a Special Task Force Team assigned to investigate the case.
He said the commission received an intelligence report that funds suspected to be proceeds of crime were “warehoused” in the accounts.
“The intelligence was analysed and found worthy of investigation,” Abubakar said.
He said Mrs Jonathan opened the Skye Bank account on February 7, 2013.
“Upon the opening of the account, several huge cash deposits in dollars were made to the account.
“One Dudafa Waripamo Owei, who was the Senior Special Assistant to the former President, was one of the frequent depositors in the account.
“Another frequent cash depositor of funds reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities into the account is one Festus Iyoha, a steward at the State House, Abuja,” the deponent said.
The EFCC investigator said Iyoha also made deposits with fictitious names.
Abubakar said between February 8, 2013 and January 30, 2015, the sum of $6,791,599.64 suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities was deposited into the account in cash.
He said Mrs Jonathan had dissipated part of the funds, leaving a balance of $5,731,173.55.
“If this fund is not forfeited in the interim, the operator of the account, Mrs Dame Patience Jonathan, will fully dissipate it.
“She made a cash withdrawal of $100,000 on the 7th of April, 2017 from the account after obtaining a court order in suit No FHC/L/CS/1343/16 on the grounds that she was not made a party to the suit,” the investigator said.
On the N2.4billion, the operative said the commission also traced the money to the Ecobank account following suspicions that it was proceeds of crime.
He said the “purported” signatory to the account was one Ada Ifegbu, with a telephone number belonging to one Esther Oba.
The EFCC operative said the N2.4billion “were substantially the naira equivalent of the United States dollars given to one Chima Nwafor John of Ecobank Nigeria Ltd by one Esther Oba at the Aso Rock Villa.”
He said it was John who contracted bureau de change operators to convert the money to naira and deposit it to La Wari Furniture and Baths Ltd’s account.
Abubakar said the dollars which were subsequently converted to naira and deposited in the firm’s account were all received in cash by John.
The operative added: “The various deposits by Chima Nwafor John through the bureau de change operators were placed on fixed deposit.
“The sum of N2,033,196,721.31 reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities is currently on fixed deposit in La Wari Furniture’s account.
“Apart from the fixed amount, the sum of N388,751,801.47 reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities is currently standing to the credit of La Wari Furniture and Baths Ltd’s account.”