Doyin Okupe, the director-general of the Peter Obi presidential campaign, was found guilty of violating the Money Laundering Act by a federal high court in Abuja.
Okupe was charged with 59 counts of money laundering and diversion of funds totaling N702 million by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2019.
He appeared before the presiding judge, Ijeoma Ojukwu, along with two companies, Value Trust Investment Ltd and Abrahams Telecoms Ltd.
Okupe was said to have received money from the National Security Adviser’s (NSA) office while Sambo Dasuki was in office.
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On Monday, Ojukwu found Okupe guilty of violating sections 16(1)&(2) of the Money Laundering Act by accepting cash payments in excess of the act’s threshold without going through a financial institution.
The NSA is not a financial institution, according to the judge, and while the former president allegedly authorized the funds, he did not specify a cash payment, in violation of the Money Laundering Act.
“I find the first defendant, Dr. Doyin Okupe, guilty on counts 34, 35, 36, and 59,” the judge ruled.
However, the judge found the defendants not guilty in counts 1 through 33 because the prosecution failed to prove the charge of money laundering, criminal breach of trust, and corruption against the NSA.
The case was then adjourned until 1:45pm to allow the convict (Okupe) to call witnesses to testify about his character, as required by Section 310 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA).
The sentence is expected to be delivered after the process is completed.
