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Dariye: London Police in Nigeria, Consult EFCC
• To quiz gov next Tuesday in Britain By Yusuph Olaniyonu, 12.10.2004
Three police officers from the London Metropolitan Police Department are now in the country as part of investigations into a case of money laundering and economic crimes against Plateau State Governor, Joshua Dariye. The London police team led by a Superintendent arrived on Wednesday and are said to be comparing notes, records and facts from their different investigations on the Dariye case with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). A source close to EFCC disclosed to THISDAY that the London team which will depart the country by weekend has already expressed satisfaction with the depth and quality of investigation made by EFCC. THISDAY also gathered that Dariye is expected to report in London for a chat with Metropolitan Police by 11am London time Tuesday, December 14. A source said the London police team told EFCC officials that "they have no doubt that Dariye as a gentleman will honour the appointment with them." According to a five-page report from the office of the Attorney General of the Federation, Chief Akin Olujinmi sent to Speaker, Plateau State House of Assembly, Mr. Joshua Lanlong on November 8, Dariye's problem with the British police began on January 20 this year. The aspects of the report conceiving Dariye's case in London are as follows: The facts are that on 20th January, 2004, while conducting a search at 127 Chiltern House, Portland St London SE17, in connection with a suspected case of theft of computer equipment via internet purchase, the Metropolitan Police found £11,560.00 (eleven thousand, five hundred and sixty pound) in a locked briefcase. 2. The said sum was claimed by one Christopher Mekwunye who asserted that Joshua Dariye gave him the money to deposit into his account with Barclays Bank, London. 3. The search revealed documents including a Barclays bank statement (Account No. 701970410) in the name of Joshua Chibi Dariye with an address of Flat 28, Regents Plaza apartments, 8 Greville Road, London NW6. The statement showed a one off credit of £918,029.00 (nine hundred and eighteen thousand, twenty nine pounds) transferred in on 27th August, 2002. 4. Subsequent search of Dariye's address yielded financial documents indicating that he also banked with National Westminster Bank Plc and held a Barclay card. 5. Enquiries with these banks have shown that he operates two (2) accounts with Barclays Bank with balances of £826,493.50 and £46,057.15p respectively. Similarly, he operates two (2) accounts with National Westminster Plc with balances of £175,000.00 and $80,000.00. 6. In all, Dariye is known to operate eight (8) UK bank accounts, seven (7) of which are sterling accounts while one (1) is a dollar account. 7. On 2nd September, 2004 Dariye was arrested in his Marriot Hotel room in London by the Metropolitan Police. Various amounts of money in different currencies totalling well over £90,000.00 were recovered from him. Dariye was taken to the Marylebone Police Station, Central London and interviewed in the presence of his solicitor. 8. In a wide ranging interview, Dariye admitted ownership of the accounts as well as his failure to declare the said accounts in the assets declaration form he deposed to after assuming office as Governor of Plateau State. 9. Even though he denied owning any property in London, inquiries have, however, shown that Dariye bought the property known as Flat 28, Regents Plaza Apartments, 8 Greville Road, London NW6 in September, 2001 for £395,000.00 under the assumed name of Joseph Dagwan. 10. Dariye had told the police in London that the said property belongs to a friend living in Jos, Nigeria, named Joseph Dagwan, the Metropolitan Police raided the property on 22nd September, 2004 and found clear evidence that the place is inhabited by family members of Dariye. While the police were still in the premises, Dariye came in. A search conducted in the house yielded cash and cheques totalling well over £100,000 belonging to Dariye. 11. Investigations conducted in Nigeria have revealed that the property at 8 Greville Road was paid for by Dariye in September 2001 through one Babatunde Lucky Omoluwa, the Managing Director of Pinnacle Communi-cations Limited. Omoluwa had in a statement he made on 3rd September, 2004 admitted that Dariye paid him the naira equivalent of £365,000 and instructed him to transfer the sterling amount to an account owned by one Joyce Oyebanjo (Mrs) a long standing friend and financial facilitator of Dariye living in London. Omoluwa also stated that he did not feel comfortable transferring the money into Oyebanjo's account. Instead, he transferred same into the account of Rowberry Morris, a firm of solicitors which handled the purchase of the property for Dariye in the assumed name of Joseph Dagwan. 12. In all, a total of about £300,000.00 (three hundred thousand pounds) belonging to Dariye have been confiscated by the police and paid into an interest yielding account operated by the Metropolitan Police. Following investigations by the British Police it has been established that the foregoing facts disclose the following offences, among others, under British law: (i) Money laundering, and (ii) Economic crimes. The report noted that Dariye had allegedly committed offences of money laundering and economic crimes under British laws and violated Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (prohibition) Act, Section 29 of the Foreign Exchange (Monitoring etc) Act 1993, Section 164 of the Penal Code in relation to false seclaration among other laws in Nigeria. However, Dariye had claimed that his arrest in London was arranged by some people in Nigeria bent on discrediting him. He also stated that before the incident he had been warned not to travel or else he would be arrested at his destination point. The EFCC has already prefered a case of felony and conspiracy to commit felony against Dariye, the All States Trust Bank and six current and former executives of the bank at the Federal High Court, Kaduna. The commission filed the case to test the extent of Section 308 of the Constitution which protects a governor from civil or criminal trial during his tenure in office. In the charge sheet, the EFCC gave details of how the governor diverted N1.1 billion state allocation into a private account and redistributed it to some beneficiaries, including himself. The charge sheets showed that on or about June 2001 in Abuja, Dariye collected the cheque for Plateau allocation from the Federation Account amounting to N1.161,162,900.00. He lodged it with All States Trust Bank Plc, Wuse Abuja and instructed the bank to disburse it to five beneficiaries. The beneficiaries were Pinnacle Communication Ltd N280m, Plateau State government N550m, Union Home N80m, PDP South-west N100m and Ebenezer Retnan Ventures (owned by Chief Joshua Dariye) N176m (in two instalments). The bank retained N4.3 million as commission on transaction (COT).
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