Alleged N1.9b fraud: Documents against Fintiri not verified — Ex-Adamawa SSG

A Prosecution witness and  former Secretary to Adamawa State Government (SSG), Ibrahim Andrew Welye, has revealed to Federal High Court ,  Abuja, that he did not verify contracts documents used in his petition against a former governor of the state, Alhaji Umaru Fintiri before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission .

The anti-graft agency arraigned Fintiri along with Mayim Constructions and Properties Limited on a 5- count charge of money laundering involving about N1.9billion alleged to be proceeds of corruption.
The court also admitted in evidence, a Certified True Copy (CTC) of the contract document for the electrification of Kirchinga, in Madagali Local Government Area Council of the state,  showing that the said contract was awarded since 2009 during the tenure of Admiral Murtala Nyako.

The prosecution counsel, Larry Aso, opposed the admissibility of the document but, Justice Ahmed Mohammed went ahead to rule that the said document satisfied the relevant provisions of the law, including the Evidence Act, 2011.
Consequently, the document which was tendered by the defence counsel, Mahmud Magaji (SAN), was admitted in evidence and marked as exhibit C.
Continuing the proceedings, a copy of the petition written by the witness was shown to him.
The witness who was the SSG to Adamawa State in 2014, told the court under cross examination that he did not go through the documents for the electrification contract and did not also visit the site, because doing so was dangerous.
He disclosed that as the SSG, part of his schedule was to oversee records of other ministries and parastatal, but could not recall the exact number of ministries and parastatal in the state.

He further admitted that although he received communications through files and documents in the course of the briefings, he did not access the veracity of the documents in the files as there was no time to analyse or clarify the issues there.
He added that his schedules in the first one week in office was to coordinate security meetings and headed political departments.
The case has been adjourned to June 7, for continuation of cross examination.

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