The Federal Government has tendered as evidence nine bags
and boxes filled with local and foreign currencies, before a Federal High Court
in Abuja, against Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Sylvester Ngwuta.
All the items were allegedly recovered from his home.
The items were allegedly recovered from his official residence
in Abuja during a search operation carried out by men of the Department of
State Service, DSS.
Recall that Justice Ngwuta is being prosecuted by the
federal government on 13 counts, including passport fraud, money laundering
allegations of retention and concealment of origin of the sums contained in the
nine bags and boxes.
A prosecution witness, Mr. John Utazi, a DSS officer , had
in his testimony on May 16, 2017, given details of how his team searched
Justice Ngwuta’s official residence in Abuja on October 7, 2016 and what was
recovered during the search.
Continuing his testimony on Thursday, Utazi revealed further
that the bags and boxes contained naira, United States dollars, British pounds
sterling, euro, South African rands, United Arab Emirates dirham and Gambian
dalasis.
The items were flung open during court proceedings, showing
to the glare of everybody the cash in them.
Of the nine items, eight of them contained naira notes,
totaling N35,358,000, Utazi had disclosed.
He said the ninth bag contained £25,915; $319,596 (USD); R50
(South African rands); 380 ( dirhams); 420 dalasis and €280 (euros)
By Ali Adoyi
