Date Published: 05/25/09

N15 billiom fraud: 32 Count charges filed against TRANSCORP officials

Thomas Iseghohi, GMD, Transcorp

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has filed a 32 count charges against the Group Managing Director of Transcorp, Mr. Thomas, Iseghohi, Company Secretary, Mohammed Buba and Deputy General Manager, Tom Okoli who are alleged to have laundered and embezzled over N15 Billion belonging to the corporation.

The trio who were hitherto investigated by the State Security Service were on May 13 transferred to the anti-graft agency for thorough investigation since the case against them border on financial crimes.

A source at the EFCC who confirmed the arrest of the three Transcorp officials also confirmed that they might be arraigned on May 27, 2009. The source also added that the Chairman of the Transcorp Board, Chief Mrs. Ndi Okereke-Onyuike has no case to answer at the moment. He did not say if she might be called again to give further testimony.

Femi Babafemi, head of media and public relations of the EFCC, who had confirmed the arrests last week, said that their offences also bothered on abuse of office through indiscriminate award of contract to their friends and family members.

Babafemi further said that the Transcorp chiefs were arrested for alleged multiple payments of legal and consultancy fees and general mismanagement of the Nigeria Telecommunications Ltd (NITEL).

He said that in the case referred to the EFCC by the Department of State Security Service, Iseghohi was alleged to have severally exceeded his approval limit of N100 million.
“Iseghohi is similarly alleged to have used friends and associates to siphon money through bogus consultancy services,” he said.

Three of them were accused of using different companies owned by their friends and cronies, mostly based in the United States, as fronts to siphon the company’s monies by inflated payments for bogus consultancy projects and contracts.

According to the source, some of the companies allegedly used by them to perfect their acts include Global Employment Solutions Incorporated (GESI), Lansak International Limited and Global Information Technology Incorporated.

Others were Anchor Pointe Integrated Limited, Asasa Enterprise Nigerian Limited, Hamattan Ventures and Centre Spread (FCB) among others.

But the source confirmed that the SSS thereafter gave the EFCC an intelligence report on them through an existing Inter-Service Co-operation between the two agencies leading to their re-arrest by the Commission.

Both Nitel and its mobile arm, Mtel, had been bogged down by failed bids at privatisation.

Sources hinted that the frustration on the Nitel/Mtel sale may force government to take drastic actions in the coming weeks to stop the several underground moves to forestall the fresh attempt at selling the enterprises.

Iseghohi was alleged to have siphoned about $1.2 million from the company’s coffers into his personal account in the United States between July 2007 and May 2008.

It was learnt that Lansak Limited was also allegedly paid N64 million as rentals for an office space which was never used while Asasa Enterprises fraudulently received N35 million for the suspicious consultancy services.

But the big one was a s whopping $108 million allegedly paid monthly as retainership to one of the companies, Anchor Pointe, to manage Transcorp’s oil bloc between 2007 and date.

The executives were also said to have used a US-based company, Global Information Technology Incorporated, to siphon $100,000 towards the end of last year to investigate a fire incident at NITEL office, Saka Tinubu, Lagos apart from other monies paid to the company for other services.

It was further learnt that another of their companies, Hamattan Ventures, was paid about $500,000 just for organising meetings for the CEO outside the country while Ishegohi allegedly paid Centre Spread over N233 million between May 2007 and September 2008 and another N205 million as legal fees within the period.

It would be recalled that BPE had in the latest attempt to resell Nitel/Mtel discovered fresh debts running to billions of naira exclusive of the over N500 million salary arrears and the N15 billion severance package.

BPE, baffled by the huge debts, decided to verify the debt claims inviting creditors to come forward to ascertain their credits to Nitel and Mtel.