Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday arraigned the Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Staff with Disabilities’ Cooperative Society, Alhaji Iliasu Abdulrauf, for alleged N1, 126,156,000 fraud.
Abdulrauf was arraigned before Justice S.C Oriji of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Apo, Abuja, on a six-count charge of breach of trust.
Count one of the charges read: “That you Alhaji Iliasu Abdulrauf, being the chairman Federal Civil Service Staff with the Disabilities Cooperative Society, sometimes between November 2017 and February 2018 in Abuja within the Abuja Judicial Division of the High Court of the FCT with intent to defraud, obtained the gross sum of N508, 528,000 via your personal account No. 2076821282, domiciled with UBA and World Trade Multipurpose Cooperative Society’s account No. 1012195580, domiciled with UBA, from the Managing Director of Wanori Investment and Properties Limited under the false pretence of awarding contracts to establish a rehabilitation centre for persons living with disabilities, and that the said MD of Wanori Investment and Properties Limited was deceived into paying for corporate social responsibility and insurance bond to enable his company access mobilisation for the contract.
“These representations you knew to be false, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (b) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”
He pleaded “not guilty” to the charges, prompting prosecution counsel, Steve Oduase, to ask the court for a trial date, and prayed that he be remanded in prison custody while the defence counsel pleaded with the court to grant him bail.
Justice Oriji admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N20 million with two sureties, one of which must be a Grade Level 14 civil servant in the federal civil service while the other must be a responsible Nigerian citizen.
The two sureties, the judge stated, must be resident in FCT, Abuja, with their residential addresses verified by the court registrar and the prosecuting counsel, adding that the defendant shall not travel out of the country without the permission of the court.
In the event of the defendant being unable to satisfy the bail conditions, he shall be remanded in EFCC custody. The matter was adjourned till December 15, 2020 and January 25, 2021, for the commencement of
trial.
