Prosecution Witness Testifies in High-Profile Trial
In the ongoing trial of the former governor of Taraba State, Darius Ishaku, and another defendant, Ismail Oluwadamilare Lawal, a key prosecution witness (PW1) has provided critical testimony to the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The case, marked FCT/HC/CR/792/2024, involves a 15-count charge against Ishaku and Bello Yero, a former permanent secretary in the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs. The charges include criminal breach of trust, conspiracy, and conversion of public funds amounting to N27 billion.
Ishaku and Yero have both pleaded not guilty to the charges brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before Justice Sylvanus Oriji, who is presiding over the case in Maitama, Abuja.
During the resumed hearing, PW1, Ismail Oluwadamilare Lawal, was cross-examined by counsel for Yero, Adeola Adedipe SAN. Lawal, who served as a personal assistant to former governor Ishaku, testified that he collected monies from several Taraba State government officials, including the second defendant, on the instructions of the former governor.
According to Lawal, the officials involved included Chindo Audu; Galiya Godiya; Hazel Bala; Joel Gilenya; Taiwo Jones, John Columbia, and Emmanuel Efun. He emphasized that he had no personal business with any of these officials, including Yero, and that he did not have the authority to deal with them in his private capacity.
“I dealt with them strictly on the instructions of His Excellency (Ishaku),” Lawal stated. He added that he was unaware of the source of the money he collected and did not know its purpose.
When asked about an entry in his notebook detailing N40 million collected from Yero, Lawal confirmed that he did not know the purpose of the funds but only collected it as instructed by the former governor.
Lawal also revealed that Jacklyn opened an account for him at Zenith Bank to collect money from Taraba State government officials. He further explained that all the officials were acting under the instructions of the first defendant, Ishaku.
During his testimony, Lawal also addressed questions from counsel for Ishaku, Eko Ejembi SAN. He mentioned that Taraba State has been grappling with insurgency and insecurity for over 20 years. However, he could not confirm whether the annual security vote of the former governor exceeded N1 billion.
He denied knowledge of two Access Bank accounts opened in his name, stating, “The Access Bank accounts are not known to me. That is my name, Ismail Oluwadamilare Lawal, but I don’t know about the accounts.”
Lawal also informed the court that he was investigated by the EFCC in 2020, and his Zenith Bank accounts were used during the commission’s investigations. He could not recall if any property at Brains and Hammers was involved in the EFCC investigation.
Court Rejects Document Tendered by Counsel
During the proceedings, Justice Oriji rejected a document from the November 12, 2020 judgment of the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, which was sought to be tendered by Ejembi through the witness. The judge ruled that there was no established nexus between the witness and the judgment, stating that the document could only be admitted during cross-examination when such a connection is made.
The prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs SAN, objected to the admissibility of the document, arguing that the PW1 was not a party to the case and had no knowledge of the matter. Ejembi, however, claimed the document was relevant to the current case, as the property listed in the judgment was the same issue referenced in Count 14 of the 15-count charge.
After the cross-examination of the PW1 concluded, Justice Oriji adjourned the case to December 8 for further proceedings.