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Dr Chimaroke Nnamani
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The Federal High Court in Lagos Tuesday ordered the
forfeiture of multi-billion naira assets allegedly belonging to a former Enugu
State Governor, Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani.
Among the forfeited
assets are undeveloped properties and transmission equipment of Rainbownet
Limited; properties of Hill Gate Investment Limited/Cuena Phones Limited;
assets of Cosmo 105.5FM, and 22 duplexes at Ebeano Estate (now Fidelity
Estate).
Others are Rainbownet’s
shares in Zenith Bank and Guarantee Trust Bank, with a combined account balance
of N4.6million; as well as monies in its bank accounts worth about
N34.8million.
The balances are in
different accounts with GTBank (N313,700); Sterling Bank (N986,958); Ecobank
(N24.5million); First City Monument Bank (N3.8million) and Zenith Bank
(N761,156).
EFCC said it is awaiting
details of balances in Rainbownet’s 10 accounts with Access Bank.
The Nation report continues:
Rainbownet’s undeveloped
properties forfeited include seven plots at Independence Layout; 567.96 Square
meters (Sqm) at Abakpa; 574.96 Sqm at Emene and 2,951.98 Sqm at Achara Layout.
Others to be forfeited
include thousands of square metres of properties at Abia State, namely Ogbor
Hill (914.633), Abayi (one and half plots), Port Harcourt Road (1,856.449),
Ariaria (640.32), Umuagari (573.263) and Assannetu (954.396), as well as
Abakiliki, Ebonyi State (one plot).
Others are in Onitsha,
Anambra State, such those at Barracks (one plot), Nkpor (1088.644), Awada
(465.14), Fegge (one plot); as well as 2,200.06 square miles of land at Okpumo,
Awka.
The company is also to
lose 693.636 square meters of undeveloped property located opposite the War
Museum, Umuahia.
Assets of Rainbownet
Communications Limited, including Central Switch Room, Microwave Radio,
Rectifier, Microwave Backhaul Transmission, among others at various locations
in Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, Abia and Imo states are to be forfeited.
The former senator was
charged along with his former aide, Sunday Anyaogu, and six firms –
Rainbownet, Hillgate Nigeria, Cosmos FM, Capital City Automobile Nig Ltd,
Renaissance University Teaching Hospital and Mea Mater Elizabeth High School.
Justice Mohammed Yunusa
later split Nnamani’s trial from his co-accused as he was abroad receiving
treatment.
EFCC re-arraigned them on
105 counts of money laundering and economic crimes involving about N4.5billion.
Part of the alleged
laundered money was from the Excess Crude Oil Funds meant for some local
government areas, including Aninri, Enugu South, Agwu, Igbo Etiti and Isi Uzor,
which was allegedly transferred to Nnamani’s bank account in the United States.
The crime was allegedly
committed while Nnamani was governor between 1999 and 2007. The defendants
pleaded not guilty.
However, after the trial
was split, four of the companies on May 19 pleaded guilty to a
10-count amended charge through their counsel.
The companies are
Rainbownet, Cosmos FM, Capital City Automobile and Renaissance University
Teaching Hospital.
They were alleged to have
failed to comply with lawful inquiry made by the Commission.
On June 11, Justice
Yunusa adjourned to July 7 for review of facts and sentences after EFCC’s
lawyer Kelvin Uzozie told the court that he was still trying to get a list of
all the companies’ assets.
He prayed the court to
convict the companies in view of their plea after tendering some documents,
including the assets’ schedule.
He also urged the court
to make an order of the assets’ forfeiture, and for the commission to be
involved in their management.
The companies’ lawyer Mr
Ifeanyi Ezeome, during the alucutus (plea for mercy), urged the court temper
justice with mercy since they were first offenders.
Justice Yunusa, said a
company can be treated as a natural person in law and held that: “It is hereby
ordered that the properties listed in the schedule be forfeited to the Federal
Government.”
He adjourned
till November 12 for the trial of the remaining accused persons.
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