N9.9bn fraud: EFCC freezes bank accounts linked to Ambode -

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has frozen three bank accounts belonging to the immediate past Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode.

The PUNCH had exclusively reported in June that loyalists of the ruling All Progressives Congress leader, Bola Tinubu, had decided to drag Ambode to the EFCC for investigation.

The EFCC, in a statement by its spokesman, Tony Orilade, titled, ‘EFCC Secures Freezing Order on Accounts Linked to Ex-Gov. Ambode over Alleged N9.9bn Fraud’, said Justice Chuka Obiozor of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Tuesday ordered the freezing of the sum of N9.9bn belonging to the Lagos State Government.

The bank accounts include First City Monument Bank account number 5617984012; Access Bank account number 0060949275; and Zenith Bank account number 1011691254, respectively.

The EFCC had prayed the court to freeze the accounts pending the conclusion of investigations and possible prosecution of Adewale Adesanya, the Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Chief of Staff to former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode.

“EFCC, in an affidavit deposed to by Kungmi Daniel, an operative of the Commission, stated that there was “a huge inflow of N9,927,714,443.29” from the state accounts into an FCMB bank account opened on September 17, 2018 during the administration of the immediate past governor of the state, Akinwunmi Ambode, and operated by Adesanya,” the statement read.

In his submission, counsel to the EFCC, Mohammed Abbas, said “The trend in the account is that the account always witnessed huge inflow from Lagos State Government in the above scheduled accounts managed by the respondent (Adesanya)”.

“There have been concerted efforts and attempts to dissipate the contents of the accounts listed in the schedule to this application.

“Without freezing the nominated accounts and temporarily forfeiting the money to the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, there is no way the fraud being perpetrated using the scheduled accounts can be stopped,” he further told the court.

Consequently, Justice Obiozor granted the prayers of the counsel to the Commission, and adjourned further proceedings to September 9, 2019.