Oronsaye is being charged along with
Osarenkhoe Afe, managing director of Fedrick Hamilton Global Services Limited;
Cluster Logistic Limitd; Kangolo Dynamic Cleaning Limited, and Drew Investment
& Construction Company Limited.
They are alleged to have committed
the fraudulent transactions between 2010 and 2011, using the companies for
offences ranging from procurement fraud, to money laundering and advance fee
fraud.
It would be recalled that at the
last sitting of June 14, 2016 the prosecution had sought to tender the
statement of Afe, but was opposed by his counsel, Oluwole Aladedoye, who argued
that it was obtained from his client through “oppression”.
His objection was upheld by Justice
Kolawole, who subsequently fixed June 24, 2016 for the commencement of a
trial-within-trial – a mini proceeding, to determine whether the statement was
obtained through oppression or not.
At the commencement of the
trial-within-trial, the first prosecution witness, Roukayya Ibrahim, an EFCC
operative and member of the anti-graft agency’s Pension Fraud team, while being
led in evidence by prosecuting counsel, Leke A tolagbe, told the court that the
statement written by Afe on February 24, 2011 was obtained from him without any
duress or oppression.
“Before he was invited to come to
the EFCC, investigations into his company, Frederick Hamilton Global Services
Limited, and another one Innovative Solutions Limited, was already on for about
a year, concerning payments both companies received from the office of the
HoS,” she said.
Ibrahim explained that the statement
was obtained from him, without the use of force, and “it was based on our
discovery during investigations, that he was invited to come and explain
payments made to him”.
“After the oral interview I had with
him, I wrote the cautionary words on our statement book and gave it to him to
read, and told him that he was not under any threat or duress to write the
statement,” she said.
She further told the court that she
explained to him that “whatever he chooses to say must be put into writing and
that in event that he is charged to court, it may be used in evidence against
him”.
According to her, Afe afterwards
appended his signature under the cautionary note. She noted that at about
2.25pm, Afe then put down his statement, based on the questions asked him, and
afterwards signed and dated it.
“It was a voluntary, free statement,
I only asked him questions to clarify issues, and his response was based on
documents I showed him,” she said.
Aladedoye, while cross-examining
Ibrahim, averred that Afe was “bullied” into making the statement. He told the
court that at 7.15am, on February 24, 2011, two operatives of the EFCC had gone
to Afe’s house in the company of a mobile policeman, and “parked his laptop,
seized his mobile phones, and took him to the EFCC office at about 8am”, hours
before Ibrahim cross-examined him.
Responding, Ibrahim explained that
it is part of operational duties for security purposes to have a mobile
policemen accompany EFCC operatives on assignment.
“I can categorically tell you that
he was not bullied,” she said.
Earlier in the proceedings, counsel
to Oronsaye, Ade Okeaya-Inneh (SAN), brought the attention of the court to an
affidavit before the court, dated June 13, 2016 seeking for the release of
Oronsaye’s international passport to enable him travel overseas for medical
attention.
Justice Kolawole, thereafter,
adjourned to June 28, 2016 to “enable the state to produce its other witnesses
for the trial-within-trial as it relates to the second defendant”, and ruled
that “the international passport of the first defendant, be released to Kanu
Agabi, SAN, Ade Okeaya-Inneh, SAN and Joe Agbi, SAN, who are to serve as
sureties or guarantors, and he is at liberty to travel through the 2015/2016
Summer recess of the court, which begins after July 11, 2016 and ends September
12, 2016 to attend to his health, and must 72 hours after his return, return
his passport to his three counsels, who must submit same to the Deputy Chief
Registrar Litigation of the Federal High Court.”
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