Douglas Blessing
Professor Jasper Jumbo and one of his kinsmen, Asai Jumbo have been arraigned before a Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State over alleged money laundering, forgery.
The Inspector General of Police (IGP) filed the matter registered in suit number, FHC/PH/623C/2022, alleging that the accused persons stole about N494million belonging to his family, the Jumbo Major House of Bonny Kingdom in Rivers State.
The accused are facing 36 count charge of Advanced Fee Fraud, and Money Laundering, among other offences, before Justice Adamu Turaki.
When the charges were read to the accused in court, they pleaded not guilty.
Kelvin Nwofu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) represented the defendants while Abdulrashid Isyaku Aidi stood in for the IGP.
Parts of the counts reads: “That you Prof. Jasper F. Jumbo ‘M’ and Asai Jumbo ‘ M on or about the 20th day of January, 2020 within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court conspired together to commit felony by inducing and deceiving the Honourable Justice S.C. Amadi, judge (as he then was), sitting at the State High Court Port Harcourt to make a consent judgment conferring on both of you the benefit of substituting all (former) signatories of the Jumbo Major House of Grand Bonny Accounts with Polaris Bank and First Bank respectively and to effect full dominion and control of the said Accounts unencumbered and which act led to your obtaining by fraudulent means the various sums of money standing to the said Jumbo Major House of Grand Bonny’s Accounts and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and other Related Offences Act, 2006;
“That you Prof. Jasper F. Jumbo ‘M’ and Asai Jumbo ‘M’ on or about the 31st day of January, 2020 within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court conspired with Polaris Bank Plc and its staff (now at large) to commit felony by relying on the purported consent judgment you fraudulently obtained from the Honourable Justice S. C. Amadi, judge (as he then was), sitting at the State High Court Port Harcourt to defraud members of the Jumbo Major House of Grand Bonny of various sums of money in the Jumbo Major House of Grand Bonny’s Account Nos. 1140174616 and 1770121671 with Skye Bank Plc (Polaris Bank Limited) and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and other Related Offences Act, 2006;
“That you Prof. Jasper F. Jumbo ‘M’ and Asai Jumbo ‘M’ between the 30th day of January, 2020: and 17th day of February, 2020 at Port-Harcourt within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court; by false pretence and with the aiding and abetting of Polaris Bank Limited and its staff (now at large) relied on the purported consent judgment you fraudulently obtained from the Honourable Justice S. C. Amadi, judge (as he then was), sitting at the State High Court, Port Harcourt to defraud members of the Jumbo Major House of Grand Bonny a total sum of N494,000,000.00 from Skye Bank Plc now Polaris Bank Limited Account Number 1770121671 belonging to the Jumbo Major House of Bonny and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and other Related Offences Act, 2006”
After the accused pleaded not guilty to the 36 count charges and were granted bail, the trial Judge, Justice Turaki adjourned the matter till Friday, November 25, 2022 for trial.
Speaking with journalists outside the courtroom, the defendant lawyer, Kelvin Nwofu, SAN, said he objected to the charges against Prof. Jasper Jumbo and Asai Jumbo, and wondered how the duo could have deceived a High Court Judge, Justice Amadi, who is currently the Chief Judge of Rivers State, to grant them judgement.
He said “You cannot say the High Court judge, who is now the Chief Judge of Rivers State, was misled into giving judgement. It’s not true. That judgement gave them the authority to withdraw the money and paid those they paid.”
“Secondly, they are saying Prof himself is not a professor because, according to them, the university that awarded him that title is not a Nigerian university, can you imagine? This is very funny. Is it only a Nigerian university that can give you professorship?, Nwafu queried.
