$2bn arms saga:Dokpesi gets bail; Dasuki, others remanded

Col. Dasuki Sambo

A Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Abuja yesterday ordered the remand of former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd), his former Director of Finance, Shuaibu Salisu and ex-General Manager of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation [NNPC], Aminu Baba Kusa, in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) custody.

They were docked on a 19-count charge of money laundering and criminal breach of trust involving N32.2billion in the $2.1billion arms deal.

This is even as Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal High Court, Abuja granted Chief Raymond Dokpesi, ex-Chairman, DAAR Communications Plc a N400 million bail. He is also to produce two sureties.

Two corporate bodies- Acacia Holdings Limited and Reliance Referral Hospital Limited, were also charged before Justice Husseini Baba Yusuf for the alleged offences.

Although all the accused pleaded not guilty to the charges, Justice Yusuf deferred his decision on their bail applica- tion till today and ordered that they should be remanded in custody.

The accused were represent- ed by Ahmed Raji [SAN] while the prosecution counsel, Mr. Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), moved for their arraignment.

According to the charge sheet, N1.45 billion was allegedly transferred into the account of Acacia Holdings Limited for special prayers; N170 million was used for the purchase of a four-bedroom duplex; N2.1 billion was paid into the account of DAAR Investment and Holding Company Limited ; N380 million was shared to support re- elec- tion of members of the House of Representatives; and another N750 million was paid into the account of Reliance Referral Hospital Limited for special prayers.

Meanwhile, Justice Kolawole in granting Dokpesi bail for N400 million with two sureties, however, ordered the former DAAR Communications Chairman be remanded in Kuje Prisons until the conditions attached to his bail are met.

He granted the request fol- lowing his arraignment on a six-count charge. He also ordered that the sureties should be government officers not below the rank of a director, either serving or retired.

He said in case the sureties are serving directors, each must produce a letter from their per- manent secretaries confirming their status and appointments.

For a retired director, the sureties must produce a government gazette in which he or she was listed to show that he or she retired as a director.

And if the accused chooses to produce an entrepreneur as his guarantor, he or she shall produce three years consecutive income tax payment.

Each of the guarantors must have landed property worth millions of Naira duly certified by qualified estate surveyor and the property deeds should be deposited with the court Registrar.

The sureties must also swear to an affidavit of means that in the event that the accused jumped bail, they forfeit the said property. Justice Kolawole also ordered Dokpesi to deposit his international passport with the court’s Deputy Registrar, who would verify the property and the claims of guarantors. The court also made an order that Dokpesi should not be re-arrested, but in the event that any government agency wants to investigate him, that agency should write him through his lawyer who should produce him for interview or investigation between 10am and 6.30pm.
He said the order was necessary to prevent government agencies from perverting the cause of justice and at the same time allow them carry out their statutory duties.

Justice Kolawole has, however, expressed fears that the charge against Dokpesi may not stand as necessary parties from the Office of the National Security Adviser [NSA] who were directly involved in the diversion of the N2.1 billion were not joined as defendants.

He said the prosecution did not put forward sufficient grounds why the bail application should not succeed, add- ing doing otherwise, it would breach all known legal principles on the granting of bail.

“The onus is on the state to show that a defendant who by the provisions of section 163 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act [ACJA] and other laid down principles is entitled to bail should be denied,” he said.