N6.9b money laundering: 'How we airlifted N1.2b for Fayose in 2 tranches' - Obanikoro narrates

Former senator, Musiliu Obanikoro, on Wednesday, November 29, 2023, told Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the federal high court, Abuja, how the inability of a defunct commercial bank (Diamond Bank) to disburse huge sums of money prompted the airlifting of N1.219billion cash to Ayodele Fayose, former Ekiti state governor, for the governorship election in the state.

Legit.ng reports that Fayose is facing trial by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alongside his company, Spotless Investment Limited. This follows their alleged involvement in N6.9 billion money laundering.

N1.2 bn airlifted to Fayose in 2014 - Obanikoro

When Wahab Shittu (SAN), the EFCC's lawyer asked him to shed light on the source of the said N1.219billion, Obanikoro replied that he only got the information on the money from the former national security adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki.

He told the court: “I was a minister under Goodluck Jonathan administration in 2014. Sometime in 2014, we were going to have an election in Ekiti state. I was saddled with the responsibility of coordinating the activities in the election. Some days before the election, I got a call from Governor Fayose asking me if I received any message for him from ONSA, I can recall that prior to that, we had some activities among which was fund-raising for the purpose of that election. When Mr. Fayose called, I told him I would call him later. I had a phone conversation with the NSA, and was told he would get back to me. After, he got back to me that N2.2billion was paid into the account of Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd.

"I handed over the N1.219 million cash to Agbele for onward delivery to Fayose. I did not take any money or N19 million, contrary to a publication by a Lagos-based online platform."

Speaking further, Obanikoro stated an account was created by one Taiwo Kareem and was used for the purpose of disbursing funds for the election.

He said: “I put a call through to let Fayose know that the money had been paid. Diamond Bank had said it did not have the capacity to make the funds available, so we opted to airlift the funds. The funds were airlifted from Lagos in two tranches, the volume was much."

When asked about the source and what the funds were meant for, Obanikoro stated that “it was meant for our election in Ekiti. It came from Diamond Bank. N1.219 billion was moved from Diamond Bank out of the N2.2 billion.”

Justice Dimgba thereafter adjourned the matter to February 27, 2024, for continuation of trial.