LAGOS, Nigeria – The trial of social media celebrity Ismaila Mustapha, popularly known as ‘Mompha‘, who is accused of laundering N6 billion, continued on Monday, July 3, 2023, with a compliance officer from Access Bank Plc., Elijah Adegboye, giving his testimony.
Notably, Mustapha was absent from the proceedings.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is leading the prosecution, and its counsel, Suleiman Suleiman, examined Adegboye.
The witness revealed that Access Bank received a letter from the EFCC as part of the investigation into the alleged money laundering.
According to Adegboye, the bank complied with the EFCC’s request by providing the necessary documents.
The compliance officer confirmed the accuracy of the bank’s response to the EFCC, which included a bundle of documents containing the statement of account of Naptown Records.
Adegboye asserted that the entries in the statement of account matched the information contained in the bank’s database.
He also confirmed that the documents were produced in the normal course of business and that the computer and printer used to generate the documents were functional.
Following this, the EFCC counsel sought to admit the bundle of documents as evidence.
Justice Mojisola Dada accepted the documents into evidence as the defense counsel, Mr. Kolawole Salami, raised no objections.
During cross-examination by the defense counsel, Adegboye affirmed that he is a compliance officer at Access Bank with over a decade of experience.
He further stated that Access Bank conducts lawful business and is a lawful corporate organization.
It is important to note that the court had previously ordered the commencement of the trial of Mompha in absentia on September 21, 2022, after he failed to make an appearance.
The EFCC had arranged Mustapha and his company, Ismalob Global Investment Ltd., on eight counts of money laundering on January 22, 2023.
A bench warrant for Mustapha’s arrest was issued on June 22, 2023, after he was absent from court.
His bail was also revoked.
The EFCC accused Mompha of violating the court’s order by traveling to Dubai with a new international passport on June 10, 2023.
The charges against him include conspiracy to launder money obtained through unlawful activities, laundering of money obtained through unlawful activities, retention of proceeds of criminal conduct, use of property derived from an unlawful act, possession of a document containing false pretenses, and failure to disclose assets.
The case has been adjourned until September 18 for the continuation of the trial.
