The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) earlier today charged the former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva to court for alleged theft and misappropriation of N2.5billion belonging to the state.Sylva has been on the run since he was sacked from office by the Supreme Court.
A source said that the Nigerian government will alert INTERPOL to assist in his capture and deportation to face the 6-count charges filed against him inside the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Citing provisions from the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act), Mr Keyamo noted that the defendant committed offences contrary to the Acts and punishable under the same Act.
Some of the charges against Sylva include conspiring to convert properties and resources amounting to N2billion belonging to Bayelsa state government between October 2009 and February 2010. He is also being accused of converting the sum of N380million property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one Habibu Sani Maigidia, a Bureau De Change Operator in FinBank Plc.
The former governor is also being accused of inducing Union Bank Plc, with the intent to defraud, to grant an overdraft facility of the sum of N2billion to the Bayelsa State Government under the pretense of using the amount to augment salaries of the state government. Other charges include the conversion of the sum of N50million of the state government, through the account of one Enson Benmer Limited with First Bank Plc and the sum of N20million through the account of a certain John Daukoru in United Bank for Africa Plc.
Sylva recently lost out in the struggle to be nominated as candidate for the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the just concluded governorship election in the state and has not been seen since.
Text of the charges
Count 1, "That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, sometime between October, 2009 and February, 2010, at various places in Nigeria, including Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court did conspire to commit a crime to wit: conversion of properties and resources amounting to N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira) belonging to Bayelsa State Government and derived from an illegal act, with the aim of concealing the illicit origin of the said amount and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 17(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act), 2004 and punishable under Section 14(1) of the same Act."
Count 2 alleges that Sylva "converted the sum of N380,000,000.00 (Three Hundred and Eighty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one Habibu Sani Maigidia, a Bureau De Change Operator with Account No. 221433478108, in Fin Bank, Plc, which sum he knew, represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act."
Count 3, "That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, on or about the 5th of February, 2010, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, converted the sum of N50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one Enson Benmer Limited with Account No. 6152030001946, in First Bank, Plc, which sum you knew represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act."
Count 4: "Converting the sum of N20,000,000.00 (Twenty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one John Daukoru with Account No. 04800250000418, in United Bank for Africa, Plc, and also conspired to commit a crime to wit: inducing Union Bank, Plc, with the intent to defraud, to deliver to Bayelsa State Government the sum of N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira), under the false pretense of using the amount to augment salaries of the Bayelsa State Government and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8(a) and punishable under section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2004."
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