The trial of former Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Ahmed Idris, on alleged N109 billion corruption charges was yesterday halted at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court due to the disappearance of one of the statements he made to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The EFCC was unable to locate the statement dated July 5, 2022, in its own file, the high court’s file, or the defence team’s file.
During yesterday’s proceedings, the anti-graft agency, through its counsel, Mr. Oluwaleke Atolagbe, began a trial-within-a-trial, following the ex-Accountant General’s denial that some of the statements he made to the EFCC in relation to the suit were made voluntarily.
Idris, who was re-arrested in October, had repeatedly claimed that the key statements proposed by the EFCC to be used against him in the alleged corruption charges were made under duress.
Following the allegation, Justice Halilu Yusuf ordered a trial-within-a-trial to verify the claim.
Although the EFCC had presented his witness, Mr. Hayatudeen Suleiman, to tender 13 different statements, trouble arose when it was discovered that a statement dated July 5, 2022, and said to be vital to the trial could not be found in the bundles of documents uploaded at the court by the EFCC.
The situation deteriorated when the EFCC attempted to question the witness but was unable to locate the statement in his own case file.
In response, Idris’ lawyer, Chief Chris Uche, told the court that the statement was not among those provided to him by the EFCC, and that the anti-graft agency had suppressed some documents, including the missing statement of the defendant.