TheCable

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it has not withdrawn the criminal charges it filed against Diezani Alison-Madueke, former minister of petroleum resources.

The commission filed a 14-count charge of money laundering against Alison-Madueke and others in 2018.

They were accused of diverting $153 million public funds in the build-up to the 2015 presidential election.

Attempts to arraign the accused have been stalled several times.

Reacting to reports that the charges against the suspects have been withdrawn, Wilson Uwujaren, EFCC spokesman, said it is not true.

He said the suspects, including Alison-Madueke, were charged separately because some of them are frustrating the trial.

“At no time did the commission withdraw the charge, which is still before Justice Muslim Hassan of the federal high court, Lagos,” Uwujaren said.

“The only development was that the commission took a prosecutorial decision to split the initial 14-count charge to enable separate arraignment of the defendants following a spate of adjournments that prevented the arraignment of the defendants more than one year after the case was listed.’

“The non-inclusion of other defendants in the original charge in the amended four count charge does not mean that have been exonerated by the Commission of any criminal allegation.”