A Federal High Court in Lagos has reserved till April 19, judgment on the N322 million money laundering charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, against Senator Peter Nwaoboshi and two firms.
The firms are Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd and Suiming Electrical Ltd.
Nwaoboshi, a Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, chieftain, represents Delta North in the Upper Chamber.
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke fixed the date after the parties filed and adopted their final written addresses through their counsel, Wemimo Ogunde, SAN, for the EFCC; Jimoh Lasisi, SAN, Emeka Okpoko, SAN, and C.B.Ipeazu, SAN, for Nwaoboshi; and Charles Nmarkwe, for Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd.
The defendants were arraigned in 2018 before Justice Mohammed Idris who was later elevated to the Court of Appeal. They were then re-arraigned before Justice Aneke on October 5, 2018.
In the two-count charge marked FHC/L/117C/18, the EFCC alleged that the defendants committed the offence between May and June 2014, in Lagos.
Nwaoboshi was said to have acquired a property described as Guinea House, Marine Road, in Apapa Lagos, for the sum of N805 million.
The prosecution said he reasonably ought to have known that N322 million 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.
Suiming Electrical was alleged to have on May 14, 2014, aided Nwaoboshi and Golden Touch to commit money laundering.
The alleged offence contravened the provisions of sections 15(2)(d) , 15 (3) and 18(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
Source: The Nation
