$15million Dollars bribe money.. Full Story Exposed

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja yesterday fixed September 20 for judgement in a suit filed by the Federal Government to claim the $15 million bribe money by former Delta State governor, James Onanefe Ibori.

Ibori allegedly offered the money as a bribe to the pioneer chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, to stop his trial for corruption.

The fund is presently in the custody of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

The trial judge, Justice Gabriel Kolawole, fixed the date after taking arguments

from opposing parties in the case.

The money has been kept in the CBN vault since 2007, owing to denial by Ibori.

But last year, the Federal Government approached a Federal High Court to give order that the money be forfeited to it.

The court had already issued an interim order threatening to grant the Federal Government request if the real owner did not show up within a stipulated period.

But before the expiration of the judicial ultimatum, the Delta State Government came to court to lay claim to the fund, notwithstanding that Ibori had distanced himself from the money.

While the drama was ongoing, a Lagos-based refrigerator repairer, Olalekan Bayode, had applied to the court that he be appointed as a manager to disburse the $15 million bribe money to the indigents, especially widows and orphans through a charitable organisation.

However, Kolawole dismissed his application for a joinder cum intervener in the suit for the money to be released to him for being frivolous and lacking in merit.

The judgment was affirmed at the Court of Appeal.

At the resumed hearing of the case yesterday, the Attorney-General of Delta State, Mr. Charle Ajuyah (SAN), identified controversy over the ownership of the fund as the main issue in the case.

He said: “It is only Delta State that has indicated real interest in this money and the document we have attached shows sufficient nexus between Delta State and the money.”

One of the exhibits tendered in court was a statement made by the EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde, where he stated that the cash came into the possession of commission through Ibori who offered it as bribe to stop his prosecution.

Ajuyah also said that count-66 of the 170-count charge filed against Ibori at the court also specifically spoke about how the money was exchanged.

He added that all the affidavit evidence showed that there was no controversy between the Federal Government and the EFCC about the ownership of the money.

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