Justice Yetunde Adesanya of the Lagos High Court sitting in Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS) was on Thursday told as to how Miss Chidinma Ojukwu, the key suspect in the murder of the late Super TV CEO, Ataga Usifo, allegedly transferred about N5m from his account, hours after his death.
Testifying before Justice Adesanya, DSP Olusegun Bamidele, the ninth prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Miss Ojukwu, while being led in evidence by the prosecutor told the court that in the course of the investigation and in a bid to know what could have motivated the first defendant to kill the deceased, the police wrote the bank asking for the bank statements of the deceased and a copy was given to them.
Bamidele made public that a close look at the bank statements combined with information obtained from the phones of the deceased indicated that Miss Ojukwu had been in control of the accounts since Ataga’s death.
It is recalled that the body of the late Ataga was discovered on June 16, hours after he was alleged to have been murdered.
However, speaking before the court, Bamidele maintained that on June 15, Miss Ojukwu used Ataga’s phone to transfer N5m from his account to another bank.
According to the witness, “On June 16, 2021, four transactions of N20,000 each were made from the deceased’s account, and on June 17, another withdrawal of N20,000 each was made five times and the remarks was transfer between customers.
“On the same June 16, N50,000 was transferred to Nkechi Mogbo, N11,200 was transferred to Caprical Capital and another N93,000 was transferred from one of Ataga’s accounts to another of the Super TV boss’ account.”
“A transfer of N110,000 was debited from the deceased’s account on June 18, 2021.
“On June 19, 2021, a transfer of N20,000 each was made four times and another transfer of N20,000 each was made five times, and it was through the USSD code.”
Bamidele equally informed Justice Adesanya that on June 13, 2021, there was an internet transfer of N10,000 to Miss Ojukwu, and another N105,000 was also transferred to Miss Ojukwu on the same June 13, for the payment of the short service let to Nkechi Mogbo, the owner of the apartment.
“On that same June 13, there was a N13,000 purchase transaction at Angle Villa, N14,200, transaction for purchase at Dwine Bar Global, and on the same June 13, there was a transfer of N20,399.
“On June 14, 2021, there was N21,000 transfer from Ataga’s account to Chidinma’s account, and another transfer of N15,000 was paid to Chidinma, there was a N5000 transaction that was made on June 14 and paid to Adiba Online Choppy,” DSP Bamidele posited.
Miss Ojukwu is facing trial before Justice Adesanya over the alleged murder of Ataga.
She was arraigned on October 12, 2021, alongside two others, Adedapo Quadri and Chioma Egbuchu (her sister) on a nine-count charge made against them by the Lagos State Government.
Miss Ojukwu and Quadri are specifically facing the first to eight counts bordering on conspiracy, murder, stabbing, forgery, making of bank statements, and stealing, while the third defendant, Egbuchu, is facing the ninth count of receiving a stolen iPhone 7 belonging to the late Ataga.
Miss Ojukwu and Quadri were alleged to have conspired and murdered Ataga on June 15, 2021, by stabbing him several times with a knife in the neck and chest.
The case has been adjourned until November 8, 2022, for trial within trial to determine the voluntariness of the defendant’s statement.
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