Chief Registrar tells how Ngwuta in 5 years got £50,000, $196,000, N119m

The Supreme Court Chief Registrar, Ahmed Saleh, on Thursday testified before a Federal High Court in Abuja how a Justice of the apex court, Sylvester Ngwuta received in five years, a total of £50,000, $196,000 and N119million

Saleh, a second prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Ngwuta, while testifying on the income of Ngwuta, explained that in five years he was appointed a Supreme Court Justice, beginning from June/July 2011 to September 2016, the embattled justice received a total of £50,000, $196,000, N119million

Saleh, who was led in evidence by lead prosecuting counsel, Mrs. Olufemi Fatunde, explained that the incomes accruable to justices of the Supreme Court comprised their salaries and allowances as well as air fares and ‘estacodes’ paid to them when they travelled abroad.

He further disclosed that the apex court justices were also paid the sum of £10,000 for medical check-up annually, and were entitled to an ‘estacode’ of $1,300 per night whenever they were on a foreign trip.

In the case of Ngwuta, Saleh said he was earning N751,087 as monthly salary and N710,000 as other allowances monthly.

According to him, for a period of five years, the defendant earned a total of £50,000 and $196,000 as medical allowances, N8million for medical trips and air fares for conferences abroad and N103million as salaries.

When Saleh was asked if Supreme Court justices were allowed to do business while still in service, he answered, “I know under the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers, judicial officers are not allowed to engage directly in businesses.”

However, when cross-examined, he confirmed that there is no known law that says a Justice of the Supreme Court could not own properties.

The trial judge, Justice John Tsoho, adjourned continuation of trial till March 17.

Earlier before prosecution witness Saleh commenced his testimony, a newly amended charge of 12 counts, which included money laundering and passport fraud offences, were read to Ngwuta and he pleaded not guilty to the amended charges.

Fatunde, had amended the charges from 16 counts to 12 as soon as she took over the case from the former prosecutor, Mr. Charles Adeogun-Phillips, in February.

Like in the old charges, Ngwuta, in some of the amended charges was said to have retained N35, 358,000; $319,596,000 and £25,915 when the operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) raided his residence between October 7 and 8, 2016.

Among other charges, he was accused of passport fraud, and that he violated the Money Laundering Act by handing over N400million cash to a building contractor, Nwamba Chukwuebuka, between January 2016 and September 2016 without going through financial institutions.

Fatunde through the first prosecution witness, Mr. Nwamba Chukwuebuka, also tendered a cash sum of N4, 365,840, allegedly recovered from the defendant’s Abakaliki home.

Chukwuebuka had earlier on January 18, 2017 told the court that there was originally N27million kept in three bags, which he said substantial part of the money was expended on the building projects before the bags were discovered by the operatives of the DSS.

Chukwuebuka then said that the remaining amount of money contained in the bags, was counted by DSS operatives in his presence at Ngwuta’s Abakaliki home and that what was left was N4,365,840.

The money, a sum of N4, 365,840 cash wrapped in cellophane and loaded in a brown bag and another silver-colour bag containing documents were admitted in court as exhibits.

However, the trial judge instructed that the bags with the money should remain in the custody of the DSS for safekeeping.

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