Metro
Maina bought $3.4m houses, his N3bn firms engaged in no business – EFCC witness
The ninth prosecution witness (PW9), Rouqayyah Ibrahim, continued her testimony against Abdulrasheed Maina before Justice Okong Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday.
Ibrahim is a detective with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
She revealed how Maina, former chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT), received diverted funds in dollars even while he was a fugitive in Dubai.
Ibrahim said Maina operated companies with N3billion net worth that engaged in nothing.
The witness said EFCC found that the defendant bought two houses in Abuja, at the cost of $3.4 million, one of which is in Jabi.
The purchases were made in the name of Common Input for $2million cash from one Adamu Modibbo (now late), using his account officer, Khalid Biu to pay.
The other, purchased in the name of one Dr. Abdullahi Faisal at the cost of $1.4million, was also paid in cash in the name of Khalid Biu.
Ibrahim said an investigation was carried out to determine if the defendant or his associates companies concealed incomes that were not accounted for and to determine if the defendant was benefiting.
She added that EFCC discovered that Maina’s net worth ran contrary to his declared assets.
Ibrahim recalled that EFCC wrote to the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) concerning the companies linked to Maina.
According to the detective, findings revealed that the companies were mere briefcase companies and were not involved in any business, let alone a legitimate one, even though the collective turnover in their accounts were almost N3billion.”
She further disclosed that Maina’ payslip as a civil servant, showed that his last payment, which was in February 2013 was N256,000.
Part of the concealed income analysis done by the EFCC showed that at N256,000 per month, Maina for 35 years as a civil servant would have saved only over N109 million without spending a single kobo out of the salary.
