Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, has told a Federal High Court, sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos to dismiss the case of alleged N2.2bn fraud, filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), saing that “he has no case to answer.”

Defense Counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN) and Olalekan Ojo (SAN), while making a no case submission before Justice Chukujekwu Aneke, said “all the witnesses that testified for the prosecution including the exhibits tendered were based on mere speculations, which would not warrant the Defenfants’ evidence,” urging the Court to uphold the “no case submission” of their Clients.

On October 18, 2018, the EFCC had preferred eleven counts charge against the Defendants; Fayose and Spotless Investment Limited, claming that Senator Musiliu Obanikoro allegedly withdrew and delivered about N2.2 billion from a company, (Sylvan Mcnamara) that allegedly failed to carry out contracts approved by Col. Sambo Dasuki, the then National Security Adviser, but diverted same to the benefit of Fayose during the 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State.

The charge was amended with the leave of the Court on November 24, 2021, and the prosecution called 20 witnesses and closed their case on February 28, 2025.

Senator Obanikoro, however, recanted during evidence on oath that the money he delivered to Fayose was the fund realized from several donations/fund raising and lunching towards the year 2014 gubernatorial election and being the Chairman of all the committees inaugurated for the said gubernatorial election in Ekiti State, by the National Working Committee of PDP, he was in custody of the fund.

Obanikoro also stated that he was coerced and maltreated by the EFCC officials at different times during investigation.

In his evidence on Oath before the Court, Obanikoro stated that he was neither a director nor shareholder nor have the mandate by the company; Sylvan Mcnamara and its representative to act for or on its behalf.

Also, the names of the beneficiaries of the lump sum withdrew by the authorized signatory to Sylvan Mcnamara were conspicuously listed in two different mandate/instruction on the letter head of Sylvan Mcnamara tendered and admitted as exhibits.

Fayose’s name or anyone known to him was not on the company’s beneficiaries list.

Kanu Agabi also stated that Abiodun Agbele, who was alleged to have midwifed the funds was not arraigned.

Nine officials from various banking institutions also gave evidence for the prosecution. All the bank officials told the Court that the money lodged in the account of the Defendants’ were at all materials time legitimate, reason it was not queried by the banks’ supervisory agencies.

Counsel to the Defenders’ told the Court that “contrary to the assertion and submission of the prosecution in opposition to the Defendants’ No Case Submission, filed before the Honourable Court on the 8th day of May, 2025, the Zenith Bank officials stated on Oath that they received, counted and deposited the money in an account supplied by Abiodun Agbele to the head of the teller unit, Akure and if the monies brought by Obanikoro was to be illegitimate it would not have been lodged in an account.

“That the name Ayo written in the teller were not personally written by the 1st Defendant (Ayodele Fayose), in fact, the second prosecution witness (Abiodun Adekoya Oshode), the then Assistant General Manager of Zenith Bank Plc, stated on 22-10-2019 as follows ‘I did not see his Excellency filling or lodging in any money either at Ado-Ekiti or Akure Branch of the Bank……. I can not say positively that the deposit slips with the name Ayo was made by the 1st Defendant.’