By Ogechi Okorie
Abuja (Precise Post) – Uyiekpen Giwa-Osagie, lawyer to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, was on Friday re-arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for allegedly laundering $2 million during the 2019 general elections.
Operatives of the anti-graft agency arrested Mr Giwa-Osagie on August 8, 2019, and arraigned him alongside Erhunse Giwa-Osagie, his younger brother, on three counts of money laundering before Nicholas Oweibo, a judge of a federal high court in Lagos.
In the three counts filed before the Federal High Court in Lagos, EFCC had accused Mr Giwa-Osagie of handling $2 million “without going through a financial institution, an amount that exceeds the amount authorised by law to be transacted in cash”.
The agency said the transaction violated the provisions of Sections 18(a) and 1(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011, adding that the defendants were liable to be punished under Section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.
The Giwa-Osagie brothers had pleaded not guilty before Justice C.J. Aneke.
Their re-arraignment on Friday followed the transfer of the case file from Mr Oweibo to Mr Aneke.
Following an application by their lawyer, Ahmed Raji, Mr Aneke permitted them to continue on the bail earlier granted them by Mr Oweibo.
The judge later adjourned ruling on the lawyer’s application seeking permission to travel to London for a medical appointment, till Monday, March 9.
Mr Abubakar, who contested in the 2019 elections under the main opposition PDP, against the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, lost.
His attempt to seek the upturn of Mr Buhari’s victory via the courts was unsuccessful.
