The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has accused candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in last year’s Governorship election in Edo State, Dr. Asue Ighodalo, of allegedly preventing the arrest of a suspect being investigated for an alleged ₦6 billion fraud, Jonathan Okunbor.
The EFCC in a statement titled: “EFCC Has No Business with Edo Election Witness that has no Corruption Issue”, on Wednesday, stated that Ighodalo lied by claiming that Okunbor is a witness of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the Election Tribunal.
The PDP candidate and his team had allegedly resisted the arrest of Okunbor, with the claim that the suspect is a witness of the PDP in the election tribunal scheduled to sit today on matters concerning the last governorship election in Edo State.
The statement further claimed that Ighodalo’s team also insisted that EFCC officials came to arrest Okunbor without any warrant or previous invitation.
The anti-graft agency however insisted that Okunbor is not a PDP witness and must be brought to book.
“The attention of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has been drawn to a trending video insinuating that Mr. Jonathan Okunbor, a suspect being investigated for an alleged ₦6 billion fraud, was an election witness.
“The Commission wishes to state without any equivocation that Okunbor is not a witness of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the election tribunal as claimed by Mr. Asue Ighodalo.
“Rather, he is a prime suspect connected to a case of misappropriation of funds involving all the 18 local government areas of Edo State.
“Ongoing investigations showed that about ₦6 billion was diverted to Kezmith Global Ventures owned by Okunbor,” the statement reads in part.
The suspect, according to EFCC, was running the ventures using the name and identity of Mr. Godfrey Mode.
The Commission noted that its investigators, in their quest to unearth the shadiness of Okunbor, arrested Emode who led them to the suspect in Eterno Hotel where a pre-trial meeting was being held.
Investigators interrogated the counsel to Ighodalo on the status of Ogunbor in the election tribunal matters and he clearly stated that he was not a witness in the matter. spite of this, Mr. Ighodalo and his co-travellers at Eterno Hotel prevented EFCC officers from carrying out their constitutional duty and obstructed them from arresting Okunbor.
“Specifically, Ighodalo insisted that Ogunbor was his witness when it was obvious that he only wanted to aid his escape from the Commission’s investigators.
“The EFCC remains committed to its adherence to the rule of law and the Commission has no business with any Edo State election witness that has no corruption charge before it. The EFCC will not hesitate to bring anyone to trial, witness or no witness, if it has a basis for doing so.
“The public is assured that Okunbor will be brought to book soon in connection with the alleged ₦6 billion fraud involving his firm, Kezmith Global Ventures,” EFCC said.
