A Federal High Court in Abuja has discharged and acquitted a former Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Ishaq Kawu Modibbo, who was accused of complicity in an alleged N2.5 billion fraud.
Justice Folashade Ogunbanjo-Giwa on Thursday ruled that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) failed to prove its case against the defendants.
According to the court, aside from conflicting evidence from witnesses that testified in the matter, the ICPC was unable to link the defendant to any crime.
Thus, he was discharged of the five-count allegations brought against him alongside Pinnacle Communications Ltd, and Dipo Onifade.
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One of the defendants earlier charged in the matter, who was chairman of Pinnacle, Lucky Omoluwa died in February 2020 while the matter was still on.
ICPC had alleged that Kawu deceived the former Minister of Information and Culture to approve the payment of N2.5billion to Pinnacle Communications Limited, a private company owned by his friend, Omoluwa.
According to the ICPC, Omoluwa, whose firm was not qualified for such a grant, subsequently transferred the sum of N537.25 million out of the N2.5bn to a Bureau De Change operator for the dollar equivalent.
The BDC operator was said to have delivered the dollars in cash to Omoluwa at his residence in Kaduna.
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