The chief executive officer of telecom satellites limited Bright Echefu, and the company’s executive director, Felix Ignoanuga were arraigned before a federal high court in Abuja for alleged tax evasion, money laundering, and advanced fee fraud.
The defendants were arraigned on a 9-count criminal charge by the economic and financial crimes commission (EFCC) to which they both pled not guilty. Other defendants listed in the case are TSTV and Briechberg investment limited.
Among the charges against Echefu is an allegation that he defrauded a company belonging to senior advocate and former minister of the federal republic of Nigeria, Tanimu Turaki, of about a billion naira, allegedly obtained under false pretenses.
Both men were also charged with money laundering bordering on tax evasion, unremitted VAT, Company income tax, and Pay As You Earn (PAYE) deducted from the salaries of 165 workers on May 18, 2020, punishable under section 15 of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011, as amended in 2012.
They were alleged to have diverted to their personal use ₦33.9 million, ₦13.5million, and ₦19.4million of tax money payable to the federal government on May 18, 2020, in breach of section 15 of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act.
After taking their plea, the trial judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a short ruling, ordered that both defendants continue to enjoy the administrative bail earlier granted to them by the EFCC, but required that their passports be deposited with the court.
