The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday convicted and ordered the immediate winding up of a company, Iyalikam Nigeria Limited belonging to a former Chief of Defence Staff, the late Chief Air Marshall Alex Badeh.
Having convicted the company on the amended 10 counts of money laundering, Justice Okon Abang also ordered the forfeiture of the sum of $1m and houses in choice areas of Abuja linked to the company.
This followed the Monday’s turn around by the company to plead guilty to the 10 counts of money laundering charges which it and Badeh had earlier denied.
The guilty plea was part of the plea bargain agreement reached between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the defence.
“In view of the fact that the first defendant in the original charge is reported dead, all charges against the first defendant are hereby terminated,” Abang ruled.
However, the judge found Iyalikam Nigeria Limited, a company which is standing trial alongside Badeh, guilty of the charges.
“Having regard to the plea bargain and plea duly taken, I hereby find the defendant Iyalikam Nigeria limited guilty,” the judge held.
“The defendant is hereby wound up and this judgement shall be served on the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) for necessary action.
“All properties in line with the 10-count charge are hereby forfeited to the Federal Republic of Nigeria through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).”
Assets linked to Badeh and Iyalikam which Justice Abang ordered their final forfeiture to the Federal Government were listed in the plea bargain agreement which the EFCC reached with the defence and filed before the court on Monday.
The assets are:
*A mansion at No. 6, Ogun River Street, Off Danube Street, Maitama, Abuja
*A shopping mall at Plot 1386, Oda Crescent Cadastral Zone A07, Wuse II, Abuja
* A duplex at No. 19, Kumasi Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja
* A duplex situate at No. 14, Adzope Crescent, Off Kumasi Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja
* A semi-detached duplex situate at No. 8A, Embu Street, by Sigma Apartment Wuse II, Abuja
*The sum of $1,000,000.00 only recovered from No. 6, Ogun River Street, Off Danube Street, Maitama, Abuja
Based on the plea bargain agreement, the court also ordered that upon conviction, the defendant should be wound up “and any other property or account in the name of the defendant shall be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria”.
EFCC was, until Badeh’s death, prosecuting him alongside Iyalikam Nigeria Limited on 14 counts of money laundering bordering on alleged fraudulent removal of about N3.97bn from the Nigerian Air Force’s account.
Badeh and the company had jointly pleaded not guilty to the charges in 2016, prompting the prosecution to open its case which it later closed last year after calling 22 prosecution witnesses.
Badeh was scheduled to open his defence on January 16 this year, but was killed by gunmen on December 18, 2018, along Abuja-Keffi Expressway.
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