EFCC closes case 4.7bn fraud case against Ladoja

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Tuesday, closed its case against the former Governor of Oyo State, Rasheed Ladoja, who was charged with N4.7billion fraud before a Federal High Court in Lagos.

Ladoja is charged alongside a former Commissioner for Finance in the state, Waheed Akanbi. The charges against the accused border on money laundering and unlawful conversion of funds belonging to Oyo State to their own.

The accused were brought before Justice Mohammed Idris on Dec.14, 2016, but they pleaded not guilty to the eight-count charge preferred against them by the EFCC.
The judge had earlier granted them bails.

The EFCC closed its case against the defendants yesterday after his last witness, Abubakar Madaki, an investigator, was cross-examined by the defence counsel — Messrs Bolaji Onilenla and Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika.

Upon the closure of the prosecution’s case, the defence counsel hinted that they would be filing applications for no-case submission on behalf of their clients.

Justice Mohammed Idris adjourned further proceedings in the case till September 27.

Ladoja and Akanbi were first arraigned in 2008 before Justice A.R. Mohammed of the Federal High Court but they challenged the validity of the charges all the way to the Supreme Court over a period of seven years before the apex court in 2015 dismissed their appeal and sent them back to the high court to face their trial.