By Ubong Sampson
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has confirmed that Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Minister of Aviation, is currently in its detention and being questioned over criminal allegations against him.
On Monday in Lagos, officials from the anti-graft agency confirmed this to Newsmen. According to the sources, the former minister was asked to answer questions about the forgery of a medical report that he allegedly obtained to avoid his trial before a Federal High Court in Lagos.
At about 1pm, Fani-Kayode and his lawyer were said to have arrived at the Lagos office of the commission. As of the time of this report, he is still answering questions from EFCC investigators. The commission stated that it would provide an update on the interrogation once its investigations are completed.
Fani-Kayode is on trial before Justice Daniel Osiagor of the Federal High Court in Lagos for an alleged N4.6 billion fraud.
On a 17-count charge involving conspiracy, money laundering, and fraud, Kayode was charged alongside a former Minister of Finance, Nenadi Usman, and two others by the EFCC. Due to his failure to appear before the court for his re-arraignment following the transfer of the former trial judge, Justice Rilwan Aikawa, the judge imposed a cost of N200,000 on him at the court’s last sitting on October 13.
After failing to appear before the court for his re-arraignment, he was ordered to pay the fine or face having his bail revoked.
Instead of showing up for his re-arraignment, the former minister had sent the court a letter claiming his doctors had ordered him to be on bed rest. Bilikisu Buhari, counsel for the EFCC, told the court that the second defendant’s letters had grown in number and had also become an excuse for him to avoid trial.
“He’ll be writing this type of letter for the third time from the same hospital. This is the type of letter we get whenever he doesn’t want to go to court”, Buhari explained.
However, Fani-Kayode’s, lawyer Bobo Fred-Ajudua, intervened and told the judge that, despite his client’s recurrent illness, he had attended court regularly, as evidenced by the court’s records. He then requested that the court grant an adjournment in his client’s favour. At that point, the trial judge decided to look through the court’s records, and after doing so, he discovered that the second defendant had previously requested a similar medical excuse five times. The court then instructed the defence attorney to choose one of two options— revoking of the second defendant’s bail or an imposed fine of N200,000 to be paid before the next trial date.
“According to my records, the second defendant had written the court five times, requesting a medical leave of absence from his trial. The second defendant must pay a cost of N200,000 before the next adjourned date, as recurring medical excuses have been a pattern that has slowed this trial,” the judge said.
The defense attorney opted for the latter. Justice Osaigor then adjourned the case until November 30th, when all of the defendants will be re-arraigned.
The defendants were accused of unlawfully retaining over N3.8 billion in counts one to seven, which they reasonably should have known was part of the proceeds of an unlawful act of stealing and corruption. Counts eight through fourteen charged the defendants with illegally using over N970 million that they reasonably should have known was part of a corrupt act.
In counts 15 to 17, Fani-Kayode and one Olubode Oke, who is said to be at large, were accused of making cash payments of about N30 million – exceeding the legal limit – without going through a financial institution. All of the offences were said to violate the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012’s Sections 15 (3) (4), 16 (2) (b), and 16 (5).
