Court delivers judgment on Metuh Feb 25 – TheNigerialawyer

The Federal High Court in Abuja, on Tuesday, fixed February 25,
2020, for judgment in the nearly four years trial of a former
Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Olisa Metuh,
on money laundering charges involving the N400m which he allegedly
received fraudulently from the Office of the National Security
Adviser in 2015.

Justice Okon Abang fixed the date for judgment after the
prosecution and defence lawyers made their closing arguments on
Wednesday.

Metuh and his company, Destra Investment Limited, are being
prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on seven
counts of money laundering including allegations that they both
fraudulently took the N400m “when they reasonably ought to know”
that the money was part of the proceeds of alleged criminal
activity of the then NSA, Sambo Dasuki.

Metuh was also accused of transacting with a cash of $2m without
going through a financial institution in violation of a provision
of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.

The defendants had pleaded not guilty to all the seven counts
when they were arraigned before the court in January 2016.

On Tuesday, the defence team, comprising, Mr. Abel Ozioko, who
appeared for Metuh and Mr. Tochukwu Onwugbufor (SAN), urged the
court to discharge and acquit their clients on the grounds that the
prosecution failed to prove the alleged offences.

But the prosecution led by Mr. Sylvanus Tahir, maintained that
his team had proved all the offences charged beyond reasonable
doubt, as he called on the judge to pass a guilty verdict on the
defendants.