$330,000 fraud: Witness confirms court registrar’s involvement

An officer of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Emmanuel Afanda, yesterday told an Ikeja High Court that his team found a document which emanated from a Lagos socialite, Fred Ajudua, in the residence of a court registrar, Oluronke Rosolu, who is facing trial over alleged involvement in defrauding a former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi of $330.000.

Rosulu, a former registrar to Justice Joseph Oyewole, was arraigned before Justice Lateef Lawal Akapo on a two-count charge of conspiracy to obtain money by false pretences and obtaining money by false pretenses

EFCC alleged that the court registrar (Rosulu) helped Ajudua to siphon the money from Bamaiyi between November 2004 and June 2005 while both of them were being remanded at Kirikiri Prisons for separate offences.

The anti-graft agency agency said Ajudua obtained the money from Bamaiyi by claiming that it represented the professional fees charged by Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) to handle his case.

Led in evidence by the EFCC counsel, Mr Seidu Atteh, Afanda told the court that he was a member of the team which investigated Bamaiyi’s petition to the EFCC regarding the scam.

The matter was adjourned till today for continuation of trial.