Alleged $12m Fraud: Witness Confirms Receiving $12m in Cash, Facilitated by SunTrust Bank Executives as Defence Fails to Tender Exhibit

The First Prosecution Witness, PW1, in the trial of Halima Buba and Innocent Mbagwu on Friday, July 18, 2025 told Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja that he received the sum of $12 million (Twelve Million Dollars) with the involvement of defendants for transfer to Aisha Achimugu’s bank accounts.

Achimugu owns Ocean Gate Energy Oil and Gas, whose account is domiciled in Zenith Bank Plc.

The witness, a bureau de change operator, while been led in evidence by prosecution counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, stated that between March 10 and 24, 2025 he had received $12m from Aisha Achimugu as cash swap in Abuja and Lagos branches of SunTrust Bank, adding that though he has both naira and dollar accounts with the bank that “None of the money went through my account.”

Testifying further, he said, “It was on social media that I heard that Aisha Achimugu has been arrested and I forwarded it to the first defendant. I can also recall that after meeting Aisha Achimugu, she has also given me a total of $1.8 million for conversion into naira and they were in tranches,” he said.

During cross-examination of the witness, defence counsel, Johnson Usman, SAN, sought to tender some exhibits in evidence that comprise the count charges, extra-judicial statements of the witnesses and those of the defendants in the EFCC, certificate of identification but failed due to the argument of the prosecution that the defence ought to be more factual by tendering the certified true copies  of the exhibits it wished to tender.

The prosecution counsel observed that, “The documents from Page 10 to 12 can only be certified by the officer of the EFCC. From Page 13 to 31 is a letter from SunTrust Bank to the EFCC, forwarding account statements and account opening documentation of Aisha Achimugu to the EFCC, it is only the officers of the EFCC who received these documents that are in custody of the original that can properly certify these documents, so they cannot be tendered from the bar.”  

Speaking further, Oyedepo said “My lord, from Page 32 to 83 are extra-judicial statements of the defendant to the EFCC and other witnesses to be called in this proceedings and it is the EFCC that can certify these documents. The extra-judicial statements of the various witnesses can only be tendered upon the satisfaction of the condition enunciated in Section 232 of the Evidence Act. Also from Page 84 to 181 has been tendered as Exhibit P1, we submit that whereas Page 2 of the documents, including Page 3 to 181 must be in substantial compliance with Section 104 of the Evidence Act. There is no name of certified officer, no designation, no evidence of payment of certified fees. I believe my lord that what the tendering party intends to achieve is to turn my lord to  a forensic expert. I ask my learned brother to do the needful and I urge your lordship to decline its  admissibility,” he said 

Justice Nwite adjourned the matter till October 16, 17, 2025 for ruling on the admissibility of exhibits and continuation of the cross-examination. 

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC is prosecuting both defendants, who are Managing Director/Chief Executive and Chief Compliance Officer of SunTrust Bank Ltd, and first and second defendants, respectively on a six-count charge of money laundering to the tune of $12 million.