Former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu, was on Thursday discharged and acquitted of charges of money laundering by a Federal High Court in Abuja.
Yakubu was arraigned before the trial Judge, Ahmed Mohammed, on March 16, 2017, on a six-count charge bordering on money laundering and false declaration of assets.
Delivering Judgement, the judge said the prosecutor, the EFCC had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt to warrant the conviction of Yakubu.
Mohammed also ordered the refund of the said money lodged in the coffers of the CBN to be returned forthwith.
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Persecondnews recalls that on February 3, 2017, operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), raided the Kaduna property of the ex- NNPC boss and recovered the sum of $9.8m and £74,000 stashed in a fire-proof safe.
According to Yakubu, he omitted the monies from the EFCC assets declaration form given to him to fill in 2015.
Upon filing a no-case submission, Justice Mohammed had struck out two counts out of the six-count charge.
On appeal, another two counts were struck out by the court of appeal, thereby leaving Yakubu with the remaining two counts to answer before the court.
In July 2021, the Supreme Court also dismissed an appeal seeking the retrieval of his forfeited monies filed by the former NNPC boss.
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