Maitama, today, Wednesday September 18, 2019, heard how evidence
linking the company used by the former Secretary to the Government of
the Federation, Babachir Lawal, to allegedly defraud the federal
government to the tune of N500million (Five Hundred Million Naira,) was
extracted from a telephone.
Lawal and his younger brother, Hamidu David Lawal, Suleiman Abubakar,
Apeh John alongside two companies, Rholavision Engineering (fifth
defendant) and Josmon Technologies (sixth defendant), are facing
prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on an
amended 10-count charge, bordering on fraud, diversion of funds and
criminal conspiracy to the tune of over N500million (Five Hundred
Million Naira, only).
One of the charges read: “That you Engineer Babachir David Lawal, while
being the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and a
director of Rholavision Engineering Ltd on or about the 22nd of August
2016 at Abuja in the Abuja judicial division of the High Court of the
Federal Capital Territory, did knowingly hold indirectly private
interest in the contract awarded to Josmon Technological Limited but
executed by Rholavision Engineering Limited for the removal of invasive
plant species and simplified irrigation to the tune of N258,132,735.99
(Two Hundred and Fifty Eight Million, One hundred and Thirty Two
Thousand, Seven Hundred and Thirty Five Naira, Ninety Nine Kobo) only,
by the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation
(OSGF) through the Presidential Initiative for North East (PINE) and
thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 12 of the Corrupt
Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.”
At the resumed hearing of the case today, a prosecution witness and
certified data examiner with the EFCC, Fatima Asabe Umar, told the court
how she extracted a forensic report from an iphone belonging to one Mr
Gulani, using a cellebrite camera. But the attempt by the prosecution
counsel, Offem Uket to tender the video evidence in a CD, was opposed by
the defence counsel, Chief Akin Olujimi, SAN. According to him,
information generated from the phone or any other device by virtue of
section 84 of the Evidence Act, must be certified to be admitted in
evidence. He explained that the prosecution has not produced any such
certification.
Justice Okeke, after listening to the argument of both counsel,
adjourned the matter to September 24, 2019, for continuation of trial.