Get Guardian on GoogleThe Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, on Wednesday adjourned the trial of a former Managing Director of Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Ahmed Kuru, and four others.
Kuru and the four others are facing fraud allegations to the tune of N76bn and $31.5m fraud, conspiracy, stealing, and abuse of office.
During the trial, the second prosecution witness, who is a former Group Executive Director of Union Bank, Austine Obigwe, told the court that two years after he exited Union Bank, Arik Air was indebted to his company, Staal, to the tune of $2.3m.
Obigwe also told the court that he participated in an inspection of 26 aircraft belonging to Arik Air in 2009, and found them to be airworthy and in good condition based on assessments provided by Lufthansa.
The witness testified to the court that there were no complaints from other financial institutions suggesting that Arik Air was defaulting on its loan obligations during his tenure at Union Bank and that the airline was servicing its loan at the time.
“I can only speak for the period I was there. When I was in Union Bank, Arik Air was one of the best companies,” Obigwe told the court.
He was also asked for more information about a letter AMCON allegedly wrote to Union Bank on April 23, 2009. In his response, Obigwe told the court the letter was not brought to his attention while he was still with the bank.
The judge, Justice Mojisola Dada, adjourned the case till June 4 for the continuation of the trial.
