Former Kaduna State Governor Mallam Nasir El-Rufai’s Special Adviser/Counsellor Olajimi Lawal has been dragged to court for abuse of office, money laundering and fraud.
He has been accused by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) of collecting N64.8 million from the state government and paying same to the account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited of which he was a sole signatory.
Lawal is to face trial with a former Commissioner for Finance in the state, Yusuf Inuwa, a former Accountant-General, Umar Waziri and Solar Life Nigeria Limited.
According to the ICPC, there was no evidence of contract executed by Solar Life Nigeria Limited.
Lawal was paid some of the sums from the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) account of the state.
In the charge sheet dated January 15, the three former officials will be tried by the Kaduna Division of the Federal High Court.
No date has been fixed for their arrangement.
The charges, obtained by The Nation, are as follows:
•That you, Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi (M), sometime in July, 2018 or thereabouts while being a public officer in the employment of Kaduna State Government as Senior Special Adviser/Counsellor to the former Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, indirectly took control of the sum of N10,000,000. (ten million naira) from the Kaduna State Accountant-General operational account in secong generation bank paid into the account-of Solar Life Nigeria Limited, an account you were the sole signatory, which fund you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: corruption and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) and punishable under Section 18 (3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
•That you, Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi (M) sometime in July, 2018 or thereabouts while being a public officer in the employment of Kaduna State Government as Senior Special Adviser/Counsellor to the former Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, indirectly took control of the sum of N47,840,000 (forty seven million, eight hundred and forty thousand naira) from the Kaduna State Ministry of Finance through the account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited, an account you were the sole signatory, which fund you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: corruption and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) and punishable under Section 18 (3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
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•That you, Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi (M) sometime in September, 2018 or thereabouts while being a public officer in the employment of Kaduna State Government as Senior Special Adviser/Counsellor to the former Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, indirectly took control of the sum of N7,320,562.00 (seven million, three hundred and twenty thousand, five hundred and sixty-two naira) from the Kaduna State Government Internally Generated Revenue Account domiciled with another second generation bank paid into the account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited, an account you were the sole signatory, which fund you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: corruption and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) and punishable under Section 18 (3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
•That you, Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi (M) sometime in October, 2024 or thereabouts at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, knowingly made false statement to Messrs. Wellington Nkemadu and Gudi Johnson Daniel in course of their official investigative duties, when you informed them that the total sum of N64,800,562 in three tranches of N10,000,000,00, N47,840,000.00 and N7,320,562.00 you received from Kaduna State Government through Solar Life Nigeria Limited’s account was paid to Bariatu Yusuf Mohammed and Aisha Dkko as estacode, which statement you knew was false and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 25(1))(a) and punishable under Section 25(1)(b) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offence
•That you Umar Waziri (M) sometime in of July, 2018 or thereabouts while being a public officer in the employment of Kaduna State Government as Accountant General of Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did confer corrupt advantage upon one Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi (M) an employee of the Kaduna State Government as Senior Special Adviser/Counsellorto the former Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State when you paid him the sum of the sum of N10,000,000. (ten million naira) the account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited from the Kaduna State Accountant General Operational in the performance of your duties as Accountant General of Kaduna State and you thereby Committed and offence contrary to and punishable under Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
•That you Umar Waziri (M) sometime in of September, 2018 or thereabouts while being a public officer in the employment of Kaduna State Government as Accountant General of Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did confer corrupt advantage upon one
•Lawal, an employee of the Kaduna State Government as Senior Special Adviser/Counsellor to the former Governor, Mallam Nasir E)-Rufai of Kaduna State when you paid him the sum of the sum of N7,320,562.00 (seven million, three Hundred and twenty thousand, five hundred and sixty-two naira) through an account belonging to Solar Life Nigeria Limited from the Kaduna State Government IGR account in the performance of your duties as accountant-general of Kaduna State and you thereby Committed and offence contrary to and punishable under Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
•That you Yusuf Inuwa (M) sometime in of July, 2018 or thereabouts while being a public officer in the employment of Kaduna State Government as Commissioner of Finance of Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did confer corrupt advantage upon one
•Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi an employee of the Kaduna State Government as Senior Special Adviser/Counsellor to the former Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State when you paid him the sum of the sum of N47,840,000. (forty seven million, eight hundred and forty thousand naira) through an account belonging to Solar Life Nigeria Limited from the Kaduna State Ministry of Finance in the performance of your duties as commissioner of Finance, Kaduna State and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
•That you Solar Life Nigeria Ltd., sometime in July, 2018 or thereabouts at Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, indirectly retained the sum of N10,000,000. (ten million naira) through one Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi also known as Mr. Jumi Adebisi Lawal from the Kaduna State accountant-general operational account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited where the said Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi also known as Mr. Jumi Adebisi Lawal operated the said account as sole signatory, which fund you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: corruption and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) and punishable under Section 18 (4) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
•That you Lawal Shakiru Olajimi Adebisi also known as Mr. Jumi Adebisi Lawal and SOLAR LIFE NIGERIA sometime in the months of July and September, 2018, or thereabouts, at Kaduna State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, directly retained the sums of N10,000,000. (Ten Million Naira), N47,840,000 (forty-seven million, eight hundred and forty thousand naira) and N7,320,562.00 (seven million, three hundred and twenty thousand, five hundred and sixty-two naira) from the Kaduna State Government accounts to wit: accountant-general operational account and the Ministry of Finance account paid into the account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited, which funds you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: corruption and fraud and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) and punishable under. Section 18 (3) & (4) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”
Courtesy: @The Nation.