EFCC tenders police witness in alleged N2b fraud suit against Jang, Pam

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday presented its star witness, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Musa Sunday, in an alleged N2b fraud suit the Federal Republic brought against Senator Jonah David Jang and Yusuf Gyang Pam.

Sunday, who is the 11^th prosecution witness, was led in evidence by EFCC’s counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN) in the case instituted at the Plateau State High Court in May 2018.

Testifying, Sunday said on June 9, 2014 the commission received a petition from Chairman of Civil Society Against Corruption (CSAC), signed by one Olarewaju Suraj.

He said the petition was attached with another one from the Plateau Patriotic Front (PPF).

He added that the petition was referred to him and quickly constituted a team headed by one Chief Superintendent of Police, Babangida Umar Husseini with a junior officer, Detective Janet Pius.

Sunday noted that on receiving the petition, his team swung into action by writing letters to commercial banks.

He disclosed that the team also wrote to Secretary to the Plateau State Government, state Accountant-General, Attorney-General, Plateau State Medium Enterprises Office after which they received responses from them, adding that their action was based on the petition earlier received.

Sunday said when the first response came from one of the banks, the team saw from the statement of accounts, Project Account 1 where N2 billion was credited to its account.

He also showed how Jang instructed his then Commissioner of Finance, Davou Mang, to raise a memo seeking his (Jang’s) approval to borrow N2 billion for the state government, adding that it was against Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) guidelines, among other testimonies.

But counsel to Jang, Benson Bama, objected to the admissibility of the documents, as the petition he submitted was not addressed to the first defendant.

He added, the document did not emanate from the witness and therefore, he could not tender it, urging the court to admit the document as rejected.

Responding to Bama’s argument, Jacobs said the argument was not tenable because the EFCC investigated the case, insisting that what was being tendered in court were discovered during investigations.

Citing several legal authorities, he wondered who else qualified to tender the document if not the Investigating Police Officer (IPO).