A Federal High Court in Abuja has heard how $12 million in cash was allegedly exchanged at various branches of SunTrust Bank over a 10-day period.
According to Naija News, a key witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), a businessman named Ciroma, gave the testimony on Thursday during the ongoing trial of Halima Buba, Managing Director and CEO of SunTrust Bank, and Innocent Mbagwu, the bank’s Executive Director and Chief Compliance Officer.
Led in evidence by EFCC counsel Ekele Iheanacho, Ciroma who identified himself as a former bureau de change operator said he had dealings with Buba but never met Mbagwu in person, only speaking to him over the phone.He submitted documents showing how the $12 million was disbursed in cash across SunTrust Bank branches in Abuja and Lagos between March 10 and March 20.
The transactions, he said, began after businesswoman Aisha Achimugu contacted him for a foreign exchange arrangement through the bank.Ciroma testified that after reaching out to Buba, she confirmed her involvement. On the same day, a bank staff member from Abuja named Iliya informed him that $1 million in cash was ready. Associates of Ciroma later collected multiple cash sums on behalf of Ashrap Ltd, a company linked to his friend Hassan Dantani.
Other pickups included $1 million by Abdulkadir Mohammed and $2 million by a man identified as Kabiru—all in cash.The witness explained that the full $12 million was eventually converted and deposited in tranches into the Zenith Bank account of Oceangate Energy Oil & Gas, a company owned by Achimugu, who reportedly intended to use the funds to acquire an oil block.According to Ciroma, Buba personally oversaw the Abuja transactions, while Mbagwu coordinated those in Lagos.
EFCC lawyers also submitted WhatsApp chats between Ciroma and Buba, along with a certificate of identification. Though defence lawyers Johnson Usman and M.S. Ibrahim objected to the document’s admissibility, they postponed their arguments until their final written address.Buba and Mbagwu are currently facing a six-count charge of money laundering involving $12 million.
The EFCC alleges that the two facilitated the illegal movement of large sums of cash outside of regulated banking channels, in violation of Nigeria’s anti-money laundering laws.Both defendants have pleaded not guilty and have been granted bail.
