EFCC indicts Ministry officials for smuggling Atuche’s name into pardon list
By Paul Michael
Two officials of the Federal Ministry of Justice have been indicted for allegedly receiving bribes to smuggle the name of a jailed banker, Francis Atuche, into the list of convicts recently granted pardon by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The two officials, Emmanuel Fan and Lawrence Marinus were indicted by a report of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which served in the secretariat of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Prerogative of Mercy (PACPM).
While Emmanuel Fan headed the PACPM secretariat, Lawrence Marinus was a member of the secretariat. Both were drawn from the Federal Ministry of Justice to serve in the PACPM secretariat.
One other official, who allegedly paid the bribe on behalf of Atuche is yet to be identified, however, s/he is being tracked by the EFCC, according to the report.
The 12-member PACPM headed by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, had recommended 162 convicted persons for pardon and other forms of clemency in a list sent to President Buhari and the Council of State on 14 April.
However, the Council of State approved pardon for 159 of the recommended persons in April while rejecting the names of three others.
One of the three rejected names was Atuche, the former Managing Director of Bank PHB, who was, in June 2021, sentenced to six years in prison for stealing the bank’s N27 billion.
Atuche was, on the PACPM’s list submitted to the Council of State, “recommended for clemency on the grounds of life-threatening ill health.” But the recommendation was rejected by the Council of State.
However, Malami, on 6 June, sent a petition to the EFCC alleging that the PACPM’s final report was “doctored/tampered with” to include Atuche’s name.
According to the AGF, whose petition presented “a case of conspiracy, abuse of office and corruption”, pointed an accusing finger at the PACPM secretariat.
He explained that the PACPM’s list, which was finalised in November 2021, was referred to the secretariat for production and onward transmission to President Buhari and the Council of State for consideration and ratification.
EFCC subsequently arrested and interrogated some of the members of the PACPM, the PACPM secretariat and the ACJRD.
A source at the EFCC who pleaded anonymity said that the “investigation into the smuggling” of Atuche’s name into the list of the “Presidential Advisory Committee on Prerogative of Mercy has been concluded.”
The report of the EFCC investigation, which was addressed to Malami indicted the head of the PACPM secretariat, Fan, and another member of the secretariat, Marinus, saying both colluded to include Atuche’s name in the PACPM’s list.
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Marinus, according to the report, received money from Fan and the yet-to-be-known agent of Atuche. The report, however, did not name the amount of money allegedly given in the bribery scandal.
“Investigation, so far, has revealed that Emmanuel Ishaku Fan conspired with Lawrence Marinus to include the name of Francis Atuche in the final report of PACPM submitted to the President and the Council of State for consideration and ratification.
“The investigation has also established that Lawrence Minus received money from both Emmanuel Ishaku Fan and a yet-to-be-verified agent of Francis Atuche to perfect the plan, while Emmanuel Ishaku Fan is in direct contact with the so-called agent of Francis Atuche,” the report said.
The report further said efforts are in top gear to arrest other co-conspirators for prosecution.
It also absolved the acting Director of the Administration of Criminal Justice Reform Department of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Leticia Ayodele-Daniel, and Grace Okewole.
The report said Mrs Ayodele-Daniel and Ms Okewole “have not been found to be criminally liable.”
Meanwhile, Fan denied any wrongdoing, saying he was yet to be informed of the outcome of EFCC’s investigation.
“I am not aware of my indictment by the EFCC. I know nothing about the allegation.
“I am not aware of any outcome of EFCC’s investigation over the allegation. We were only invited and questioned. Since then, we have not received any information that I have been indicted.
“I’m shocked to hear that I have been indicted (by the EFCC),” Fan said.
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