Ajumogobia Admits Taking N18m ‘loan’ From Oil Firm’s MD For London Home

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has got a major lead into how a judge under its investigation got N18 million from the Managing Director of a leading oil and gas company to buy a house in London while still serving as a
Federal High Court judge. The anti-graft agency stumbled on the fresh lead while interrogating Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, one of the six judges being probed over alleged corrupt practices while serving in the Temple of Justice.

The female judge, who turned in herself to EFCC for questioning last week, and is undergoing 

routine questioning by the security agents over suspected cash receipts, admitted that she actually got the said N18 million as a soft loan from a ‘family friend’ who happens to be a major player in the downstream sector of the Nigerian oil industry with a view to buying a house in the United Kingdom. A top source, who confirmed the discovery of the amount in the course of investigating the judge, the amount was wired to a foreign account from the judge’s domiciliary account for the purchase of a property in the UK.

The agency did not however disclose the location of the property in the UK, apparently not to hinder investigation. But to get the truth about the ‘loan allegedly granted the judge by the oil tycoon, the EFCC last night began questioning the MD of the firm. The man was at the office of the commission last night and it was not clear if he would be released as at the time of filing the report. A top EFCC source told Vanguard that the money was transferred by the businessman to Justice Ajumogobia’s account in 2012, pointing out that there was no paper to indicate that it was a loan, as claimed by her.