CASE NUMBER 10888:

IGBINEDION’S BROTHER SLAMMED WITH N3 MILLION FINE

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Alleged Perpetrators(s)

Michael Igbinedion Patrick Eboigbodin Gava Corporation Romring Nigeria Limited PML Securities PML Nigeria Limited

Location (Town / State)

Benin City , Edo

Date of Event

30 Apr 2015

Date of republication

30 April every year

Case category (Choose all that apply)

Case Summary

Michael Igbinedion, the younger brother to Ex-Governor Lucky Igbinedion of Edo State was ordered to pay a fine of N3 Million for his complicity in the political corruption orchestrated by his brother who is also a convicted thief.

Full story

Michael Igbinedion and Charles Eboigbodin, personal assistant to former governor of Edo State Lucky Igbinedion were both charged before Justice Muhammed Lima of Benin division of Federal High Court on an 81-count charges bordering on alleged laundering of N25 billion fund belonging to Edo state government. The duo were arraigned alongside Gava Corporation, Romring Nigeria Limited, PML Securities and PML Nigeria Limited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for offences said to have been committed between 1999 and 2007 when Lucky Igbinedion was still governor of Edo State.
The convicts who were docked on an 81- count charge had pleaded not guilty upon arraigning setting the stage for a full trial. Michael Igbinedion was convicted on counts 79, 80 and 81 which bothered on collecting cash payment above N500,000, while Patrick Eboigbodin and PML (Nigeria) Limited were found guilty on counts 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58 and 58 which bothered on collaboration to conceal origin of funds amounting to millions of naira paid into their private accounts.
In the course of trial, the prosecution called several witnesses to prove its case. During the trial, a prosecution witness Mr. Ajoyo Sowale, an Accounts Officer with the Guaranty Trust Bank, identified various account statements and account opening documents of the convicts and confirmed to the court that several lodgements were made into the accounts, and that he printed the account statements and got them certified by the appropriate authority.
Another witness Mr. Eriyo Amadiayagbon David who was Personal Assistant to Micheal Igbinedion also told the court how he was instructed on several occasions to make lodgements into his (Igbinedion) GTB account and those of Romrig Nigeria Limited and Gava Corporation. According to David, he usually received cash from the Accountant at the Government House and paid into the account of the second accused person.
"And after paying the government entourage, the remaining cash was usually given to the ADC to the Governor," he had stated.
David further identified his name on the printed account statement of Michael Igbinedion which is part of the exhibits before the court.
Abdullahi Hamza an EFCC operative who was also a witness in the trial, gave detailed account of how state funds were diverted by the convicts for personal purposes, such as buying of shares, and how funds were transferred into the account of Ekpenyong and Sons, a company owned by the first accused person, Eboigbodin.
The parties adopted their written addressed in November14, 2014, while judgment was reserved for December 1, 2014. But a series of adjournments forced delay in the delivery of the ruling, On April 10, 2015; the parties had to re-adopt their written addresses after the expiration of the 90 days constitutionally prescribed for judgment to be delivered after the adoption of written addresses. April 17 was again fixed for ruling but this too was moved to April 27.
When justice Liman finally delivered his ruling on April 29, 2015, after putting it off for two consecutive days( Monday, April 27 and Tuesday, April28 ), he found the two accused persons guilty on some of the counts. The judge convicted Eboigbodin and PML (Nigeria) Limited for money laundering on counts 50-59 in line with the provisions of Section 14 of the Money Laundering Act which bothered on collaboration to conceal origin of funds amounting to millions of naira paid into their private accounts, while Igbinedion was pronounced guilty as charged on counts79-81 which bothered on collecting cash payment above N500,000.
Justice Lima however discharged all the accused on other count charges on ground of failure to prove allegations beyond reasonable doubt by the prosecution.‎ He said the prosecution only proved suspicion and failed to prove illicit origin of funds deposited in some banks.
Justice Lima then sentenced Patrick Eboigbodin, an aide to the former governor Lucky Igbinedion to 20 years imprisonment, in addition to a fine of N250,000 on a 10-count charge.
Michael Igbinedion on the other hand was sentenced to two years imprisonment on each of the three count charges. He was however given an option N3 million fine.
This decision to impose an option of N3 Million fine on Michael Igbinedion led to an outrage, as both the EFCC and concerned Nigerians questioned the rationale behind this sentencing. The EFCC in a media statement released shortly after the sentencing described the judgment as “a scandalous replay of the episode, a few years back, when Justice Abdullahi Kafarati, then of the Federal High Court Enugu, offered an option of N3.5million fine to Lucky Igbinedion, former governor of Edo State for corruption offences ”
The Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL) in another media statement remarked as follows “What a ridiculous judgment! What ratio is N3m to N25bn? What qualifies Lucky for an option of fine which is not applicable to Eboigbodin? Do we have different sets of laws for different classes of people?”

External links/URLs

http://www.efccnigeria.org/efcc/news/1310-court-fines-igbinedion-n3m-for-n25bn-scam

http://saharareporters.com/2015/04/30/money-laundering-igbinedion-gets-six-year-jail-term

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/182339-group-slams-judge-

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