Former Aviation Minister, Stella Oduah, has indicated her readiness to refund funds allegedly taken from the Nigerian government as part of a plea bargain arrangement in a ₦2.5 billion fraud case.
Oduah and her co-defendant signalled their intention to pursue the plea agreement during proceedings on Thursday at the Federal High Court Abuja.
The Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, informed the court that both defendants had approached the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation to negotiate a settlement.
According to Oyedepo, part of the proposed deal includes the refund of funds believed to have been unlawfully obtained.
“They have made moves to refund certain amounts of money into government coffers. What remains is the confirmation of receipt of the bank draft by the government,” he told the court.
Counsel to Oduah, Onyechi Ikpeazu, confirmed that discussions around the plea bargain were ongoing, while the lawyer representing the second defendant, Favour Osuanya, also acknowledged that negotiations were in progress.
Following the submissions, Justice Hamza Muazu adjourned the case until March 26 to receive an update on the outcome of the plea negotiations.
Earlier, during proceedings on February 12, Oyedepo had told the court that the plea bargain move was initiated under Section 270 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015, which allows defendants to negotiate settlements with prosecutors in criminal cases.
The former minister was arraigned alongside Gloria Odita over allegations that they conspired in January 2014 to fraudulently obtain ₦2.469 billion from the Federal Ministry of Aviation through two companies — Broad Waters Resources Nigeria Ltd and Global Offshore Marine Ltd.
Prosecutors alleged that the defendants falsely claimed the funds were meant for “Cost of Technical Supervision” and “Security Integrated and Logistics Support Services,” knowing the representations were untrue.
The charges further state that on January 13, 2014, the defendants allegedly obtained ₦839.78 million under the guise of technical supervision costs. Another ₦1.629 billion was allegedly secured on February 12, 2014, through Global Offshore Marine Ltd for security and logistics support services, claims the prosecution described as false.
In additional counts, the Federal Government accused Oduah of dishonestly misappropriating the funds, which had originally been earmarked for a contract awarded to 1-Sec Security Nigeria Ltd, by authorising their transfer in breach of her official duties.
The offences are said to contravene provisions of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act and the Penal Code.
Both Oduah and her co-defendant had earlier pleaded not guilty to the charges. The court is expected to review the progress of the plea bargain discussions at the next hearing on March 26.
