A witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has alleged that former Anambra State Governor, Willie Obiano, used unlicensed companies to siphon public funds during his tenure.
Testifying before Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday, the EFCC’s ninth witness, Andrew Ali, who serves as the Head of the License Office at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), disclosed that some of the companies linked to the alleged N4 billion fraud were not authorized to operate financial transactions.
Obiano is currently facing a nine-count charge filed by the EFCC, accusing him of embezzlement and money laundering to the tune of N4 billion during his time in office.
During the trial, the prosecution, led by EFCC counsel Sylvanus Tahir, SAN, called Ali to testify regarding the financial dealings of 23 company accounts under investigation.
According to Ali, three of these firms—Connaught International Service, SY Panda Enterprise, and Zirga Zirga Trading Company—were not licensed to operate as Bureau de Change (BDC) businesses. He further revealed that Zirga Zirga Trading Company had been delisted from the CBN’s official registry before 2014.
“Sometime in April 2023, the EFCC sent two letters requesting verification of 23 financial institutions. After reviewing our records, we found that three of them were not registered,” Ali stated.
The prosecution presented an eight-page letter from the EFCC alongside the CBN’s response, which was admitted as exhibits A1–A8.
Under cross-examination by defence counsel Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, Ali stressed that the CBN only regulates and supervises licensed financial institutions.
“Once a company fails to meet licensing requirements, it is delisted. The CBN regularly issues public notices warning against transacting with unlicensed financial institutions,” he said.
Ali also cited sections 15 and 19 of the CBN Revised Operational Guidelines (2015), emphasizing that BDC operators are required to have operational accounts for their transactions.
Justice Ekwo subsequently adjourned the case to February 26, 2025, for the continuation of the trial.
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