Peter Nwaoboshi v. Federal Republic Of Nigeria & Ors (2023)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report – SUPREME COURT

EMMANUEL AKOMAYE AGIM, JSC (Delivering the leading judgment)

By a letter dated 17/12/2013, the 3rd respondent applied to Nigerian Export-Import Bank (Nexim Bank) for a long-term loan to finance the importation of machineries for the PVC, cables & wires and plastics manufacturing lines from China and short term working capital loan, totaling 1.2 billion naira.

By a letter dated 5/2/2014, the Nigeria Export Import Bank (Nexim Bank) conveyed to the 3rd respondent its approval of the medium term loan of 1.2 billion naira for purchase of the said capital equipment and working capital at the interest rate of 14% per annum.

During this time, the appellant was a member of the Board of Directors of Nexim Bank, a majority shareholder and the sole signatory of 3rd respondent’s Zenith Bank Plc bank account into which the Nexim Bank loan of 1.2 billion naira was paid.

The 3rd respondent paid 322 million naira out of the said loan it received by transfer to the Sterling Bank Plc account of Delta State Government as part of the price for the purchase of Guinea House Marine Road, Apapa sold by the Delta State Government to the 2nd respondent. At the time of this transaction, the appellant was also the alter ego of the 2nd respondent and the sole signatory of its bank account.

On 22/2/2016, one comrade Prince Kpokpogri on behalf of a group called Anti-Corruption and Integrity Forum, wrote a petition to the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), accusing the appellant of the commission of money laundering and several financial offences and calling for an urgent and dispassionate investigation of the accusation.

The EFCC investigated the allegations in the petition and decided to prosecute the appellant for the commission of money laundering. As a result, the criminal case leading to this appeal was commenced against him and the 2nd and 3rd respondents on a charge with the following counts:

Count 1

“That you Peter Nwaoboshi and Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd between May and June, 2014 within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did acquire a property described as Guinea House, Marine Road, Apapa Lagos for the sum of N805,000,000.00 (Eight hundred and five million naira) when you reasonably ought to have known that the sum of N322,000,000.00 (Three Hundred and twenty-two million naira only) out of the purchase price transferred to the vendors by order of Suiming Electrical Limited formed part of the proceed of an unlawful act (to wit fraud) and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 15(3) of the same Act.

Count 2:

That you Suiming Electricals Limited on or about 14th May, 2014 within the jurisdiction of this honourable court aided Peter Nwaoboshi and Golden Touch Constructions Projects Limited to commit Money laundering and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 18(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 15(3) read in conjunction with section 15(2)(d) of the same Act.”

Following their pleas of not guilty, the trial court proceeded to trial. The prosecution elicited evidence through four witnesses in support of its case. The defendants chose not to elicit evidence. The prosecution and the defendants filed, exchanged and adopted their written final addresses. On 18/6/2021, the trial court rendered its judgment holding that the prosecution did not prove its case against the defendants, acquitted and discharged them. The concluding part of the judgment reads thusly:

“Whether the complainant proved all the elements of the two count charge beyond reasonable doubt?”

The ingredients of count 1 are as follows: