Three contractors who allegedly collected N1.7 billion for jobs through the Babangida Aliyu administration in Niger State are nowhere to be discovered.
Muhammad Ndawuye Nmadu, a witness within the cash laundering trial of Aliyu and two others, Tanko Beji and Umar Muhammad Nasko, instructed Justice Mikail Aliyu of a Minna Excessive Courtroom on Wednesday.
Nmadu, who was the Auditor Common of the state from 2007 to 2020, mentioned the N1.7 billion was given to the Ministry of Atmosphere, which claimed to have shared it amongst three contractors.
The witness mentioned because of incomplete documentation of the contracts, his workplace needed to ship an official to the addresses of the contractors.
He mentioned the contractors couldn’t be discovered on the addresses.
Aliyu, Umar Nasko and Tanko Beji are going through trial on an amended seven counts of cash laundering and legal breach of belief to the tune of about N2 billion earlier than Justice Aliyu of the Niger State Excessive Courtroom.
Nmadu, who was led in proof by the prosecution counsel, Faruk Abdullah, instructed the courtroom that his accountability because the auditor normal was to audit the accounts of the state.
The witness averred that the audit crew that examined the state’s accounts noticed that cost vouchers weren’t checked by the Inside Audit and that funds have been made to contractors with out budgetary provisions.
The prosecution counsel, Faruk Abdullah, tendered the report of the Auditor Common on the accounts of the state authorities for the 12 months ended December 31, 2014, regardless of objections from the counsel for the primary, second and third defendants, which have been overruled by the trial decide.
The courtroom accepted the doc in proof, marked as Exhibit ‘A’.
Justice Aliyu adjourned the matter until April 19 and 20 for cross-examination of the primary prosecution witness.
