Breaking: Court Dismisses Money Laundering Charges Against Danjuma Goje, 3 Others

Yakubu Busari

 

A Federal High Court sitting in Jos Division has dismissed charges label against Sen. Danjuma Goje and two orders in the filed by Economic  and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC,  on Friday 22nd Match, 2019 on challenges of money laundering act.

 

Justice Musa Kurya in his 1:23 hour ruling said that the prosecution has failed to proof or link the 1st,2nd  defendants

 

The Court sitting in Jos had on Friday 22nd Match struck out 19 out of 21 charges against former Gombe state governor, Senator Danjuma Goje and three others over alleged misappropriation, laundering and diversion of N6.6 billion belonging to the Gombe state.

 

The former governor has in 2011 alongside former Executive Chairman, Gombe state, State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Alhaji Aliyu Ubandoma El-Nafaty, Food Supplier to Gombe state Government, Sabo Tumu,  and Auctioneer, S.M Dokoro were alleged of money  laundering, diversion and misappropriation of public funds to  the sum of N6.6 billion belonging to the Gombe state between 2007 to 2011.

 

 

The Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC),  prosecuted Goje for misappropriating Gombe state’s N5 billion loan  from Access Bank that was granted by the state’s House of Assembly to complete infrastructure in the state and N1.4 billion contract for the supply of dictionaries to the primary and junior secondary schools in the state through the State Universal Basic Education Board, (SUBEB).

 

Delivering the judgement, Justice Babatunde Quadri, said based on the evidences provided in the court and the failure of the prosecution witnesses to link Goje to any misappropriation of funds or money laundry when he the governor of the state, the first, dependant Gone, alongside three others have been discharged.

 

Justice Quadri said he couldn’t find where in the 19 charges, Goje was  found guilty of the charges against him looking at the ingredients of the offences.

 

My submission on the case is :  “Charge 1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 19 and 21 which bordered on diversion, laundering and misappropriation were not proven by the prosecutor. We look at the ingredients of the offences., ” he said.

 

The Judge ordered Goje as 1st defendant and based on count charge 8 and 9 to enter witness box to defend on why he gave order of auctioning of 50 Toyota vehicle to the 3rd defendant.

 

Justice Quadri also said based on the evidence before the court, Goje didn’t launder, diverted, misappropriated or awarded the contract of N1.6 billion contract for the supply of dictionaries to the primary and junior secondary schools in the state through the State Universal Basic Education Board, (SUBEB) without due process.