Former Accountant-General Ahmed Idris Accuses EFCC of Withholding Key Statements in Court
Ahmed Idris, the former Accountant-General of the Federation, has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of failing to present all the statements he made during interrogation to the court,TheCable reports.
Idris is facing a 14-count charge of alleged fund diversion and money laundering alongside Geoffrey Akindele, Mohammed Kudu Usman, and Gezawa Commodity Market and Exchange Limited, at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Maitama. All defendants have pleaded not guilty.
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Idris was arrested by the EFCC on May 16, 2022. To determine the admissibility of his statements to the EFCC, the presiding judge, Justice Halilu Yusuf, ordered a trial-within-trial.
During Wednesday’s proceedings, Idris, led in evidence by his counsel Chris Uche, claimed he made 16 separate statements to the EFCC but only 13 were presented in court. He stated that on three separate occasions—June 10, June 27, and July 5, 2022—he was taken to the EFCC’s procurement unit to make statements that are now missing from the court’s records.
Idris also alleged that the EFCC promised he would not face trial if he implicated a former finance minister and certain state governors. He urged the court to reject his confessional statements, arguing they were taken in violation of Sections 15(4) and 17(1)(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015. He said his lawyers were not present during the sessions and that the interrogations were not recorded.
“It is not true that my lawyer, Mr. Gbenga Adeyemi, was present when I made those statements. They were dictated to me by EFCC investigators,” Idris said. “None of the sessions were video recorded, and I did not write the cautionary words myself.”
In response, EFCC investigator Hayatudeen Suleiman denied the allegations of coercion or misconduct.
Justice Yusuf adjourned the matter to July 17 for the cross-examination of Idris by the prosecution.
