Appeal Court Dismiss N2.1 Billion Money Laundering Charges Against Raymond Dokpesi

Former Chairman of Daar Communications PLC, Raymond Dokpesi, has been discharged and acquitted of corruption allegations by the court of appeal in Abuja.

Dokpesi, his company, DAAR Investment and Holdings Ltd, were arraigned on a seven-count charge bordering on alleged procurement fraud and breach of public trust.

He was alleged to have received N2.1 billion from the office of the national security adviser (ONSA) between October 2014 and March 2015, during the tenure of Sambo Dasuki, former national security adviser, for services not rendered.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had called 13 witnesses in the course of the trial, and Dokpesi and his firm made no-case submissions.

On November 21, 2018, John Tsoho, trial judge, had struck out Dokpesi’s no-case submission and ordered him to open his defence.

However, Dokpesi approached the court of appeal seeking to upturn the trial court’s decision which rejected the no-case submissions he made.

Delivering judgment in the appeal on Thursday, Elfrieda Williams-Dawodu, justice of the appellate court in Abuja, held that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against the appellants.

She said the prosecution also failed to prove that the money received by the defendants was a “proceed of criminal breach of trust”.

The judge added that the prosecution did not also establish the elements of the offences charge to warrant the appellants to be called upon to enter defence.