6 things we learnt from the trial of ex-Governor Joshua Dariye

A retired detective constable of the UK Metropolitan Police, Peter Clark, on Monday, made shocking revelations while testifying for the prosecution at the trial of former Plateau governor, Joshua Dariye.

Dariye is facing criminal prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a 23-count charge of money laundering and misappropriation of N1.162 billion of Plateau state ecological funds.

Here are six revelations made by the British investigator while he was led in evidence by EFCC’s lawyer, Rotimi Jacobs.

1) The British police began investigations into Dariye in 2004

“In 2004, officers of the Met Police involved in investigating a large credit card fraud had, during search of a number of houses, found the cash on Christopher Mekwunye at 127 Chilton House, Portland Street, SW London.

“I asked him about Dariye and he told me that he was a politician and governor of Plateau State in Nigeria. I then left him with the other officers working on the credit card fraud and made several inquiries with the Barclays Bank, where they informed me that Dariye was a customer with the bank with an account that was operated in a suspicious way.”

2) Dariye operated nine bank accounts. 

“After I got the court order, I was able to gain access to the accounts operated by Dariye. I received the bank statement, the personal customer profile, which is the information provided to the bank, while the account was operated by Dariye.

“He first operated the account in 1995 and he told the bank that he was employed as a manager for Benue Cement Company, and that he was on a £500,000 yearly salary.

“There were nine bank accounts operated by him. Some of them were dormant, but some were high interest- bearing accounts, which showed a £816,000 balance. Closer examination of the account showed that money was being transferred into the account from a company called Ebenezer Retnan Ventures (ERV) with about £440,000, and the bank sending in the money was All States Trust Bank in Nigeria.

“There were a number of other electronic transfers directly made by Joshua Dariye himself; and from memory, I remember Lion bank. Mr. Dariye also operated a credit card and all the accounts were registered at one address: Flat 28, Regent Plaza Apartments, 8 Greville Road.”

3) £1 million was paid to one Joyce Oyebanjo for the upkeep of Dariye’s children in the UK

“I discovered from the account that in October 2003, she received more than £1 million through electronic transfers from Nigerian companies. She was also responsible for paying money into Dean Close School in the UK for three of Dariye’s children.”

4) The metropolitan police raided the hotel room of Dariye in London

“In July 2004, Joyce Oyebanjo was arrested; and in a prepared statement, she stated that all the monies that were sent to her from Nigeria came from Mr. Dariye and were being sent to her for the upkeep of his children and the maintenance of his property in the UK.

“In September, 2004, I received information that Dariye was at Marriott Hotel, George Street and on the 2nd of September, around 8.20am, I went to Rm 1208 ,which was occupied by Dariye.

“I introduced myself and told him I’d been investigating his bank accounts and had suspicion that the money he had received in the account was stolen. As a result, I arrested and cautioned him on suspicion of money laundering. He made no reply to the caution.”

5) A £7,000 pen, £43,000 cash, Louis Vuitton shoes and several expenses items were found in Dariye’s hotel room

According to Clark, the Metropolitan police discovered and seized £43,000 cash, £7,000 Mont Blanc pen, various currencies, including Euros, sterling, dollars and Scottish bank notes, were found and seized from his room.

Furthermore, Dariye booked two hotel rooms. “I asked him if he had travelled to London on his own, which he informed me that he had. However, I had information from the hotel that he booked two rooms. The other was Rm 1220 occupied by Chyrstabel Bentu, who claimed to be Dariye’s Personal Assistant.”

£50,000 cash was also found in Bentu’s room.

6) The former governor had already served a three-and-a-half jail term in the UK and has a warrant out for him in the UK

“On September 22, 2004, my colleagues searched Flat 28, a property bought by Dariye, and found £11,995 in his pocket, which was seized. There were also three Barclays Bank cheques of £57,000 each.

“Immediately after he failed to answer his bail, I made an application for a warrant of his arrest; that warrant for his arrest was granted and is still valid today; he was circulated as wanted on our computer system and he remains wanted in London as of today.”

The things we hear.

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