By Emma Njoku
The Force Intelligence Department, Police headquarters, Abuja has commenced investigation into how several banks and some army officers allegedly connived to divert the sum of N692,122,000 from the accounts of a company, Woods Resources Limited.
The investigation followed allegations that one Victor Ukut and the minority shareholder of Woods Resources Limited, Whoba Ogo, about 13 years ago, aided by some senior army officers, forcefully took over the management of the Nigerian Army Complex, upon its completion, and literally pushed out its substantive Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, James Onyemenam.
Police sources disclosed that Onyemenam went to court in 2011 to seek legal redress and it was discovered that the duo of Ukutt and Ogo also allegedly manipulated the different bank accounts of the company by purportedly removing Onyemenam, the majority shareholder and the signatory A, leaving Ogo, the minority shareholder and signatory B, as the sole signatory, which is the subject of investigations by the police and the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
It was gathered that upon the commencement of the investigations by the EFCC in 2021, Ogo and his family allegedly absconded from the country to the United States, from where he claims to be terminally ill. Ukutt reportedly tried, unsuccessfully, to use the court to restrain the investigation into the allegations of embezzlement. He also allegedly initiated several petitions, last year, with some departments of the police, against Onyemenam, in which the unsuccessful attempts at invading his home and office ended with the arrest of his landlord, in a case of mistaken identity.
It was learned that Onyemenam, later turned himself in at the police department, but later counter-petitioned the IGP over alleged “questionable” manner in which the investigation was being handled.
The IGP, in his wisdom, transfered the investigation to the Force Intelligence Department. Sources said the investigations have been far reaching with several banks and many senior army officers implicated in the fraud.
It was gathered that Ukutt and Ogo had filed over four suits against the IGP, the immediate past DIG of FID, and several police officers in a desperate effort to cover their tracks. In recent media reports, they alleged that AIG Abdulyari Lafia, Onyemenam and others stole over N692 million from the account of Woods Resources Limited and called on the IGP to investigate them.
While describing the report as mischievous, unfounded and tissues of lies, sources said over 87 bank accounts are currently under investigation and consequently legally frozen for obvious reasons, and the IGP and the investigating police team are poised not to allow themselves to be cowed or blackmailed into abandoning the investigation, bearing in mind that the victim has sought justice for over a decade, and despite efforts by other law enforcement agencies, he got no respite until he reached out to the police.