A Federal High Court in Abuja was told on Wednesday how both audio and video recordings were made of the interactions between Senator Shehu Musa and a businessman, Alhaji Sani Dauda who accused Sani of obtaining $25,000 from him under false pretence.
Dauda’s son, Mohammed gave details of how he setup devices on two occasions to record what transpired between his father and Sani when he (Sani) returned the money and begged for forgiveness.
Mohammed spoke while testifying as the seventh prosecution witness in Sani’s trial on a two-count charge in which he was accused, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of obtaining $25,000 from Alhaji Dauda, the Chairman of ASD Group of Companies, under false pretence.
Led in evidence by the prosecutor, Abba Mohammed, the witness said the day Sani called to informed his father that he was coming to return the money, his father called him to help set up a recording device, as advised by the EFCC.
“On that day, he (Sani) came to meet my father in his office, here in Abuja. Before he went into the office, I set a recorder in my dad’s room and left to my own residence.
“After he (Sani) had left, my dad called me to show him how to stop the recording device and I came and showed him.
“In the recording, he (Sani) came to beg. My dad told me what transpired when he came, that he was begging him not to disclose the case and to do whatever he can to forgive him.
“My dad now told him that the case is already with the EFCC and that he (Sani) has already been invited.
“On either December 26 or 27, 219 the Senator (Sani) came to my father’s residence in Kaduna.
“When I heard he was coming, my dad asked me to set up the recording device again. I then set the recording and left.
“He (Sani) came to my father’s residence with his brother, the name is Dr. Umar Ibrahim. They asked me what was written in my father’s statement.
“I told them that the statement contained what my father said in Hausa and I wrote it in English.
“Dr. Ibrahim then said ‘I just hope you did not write judges because if you say judges and this matter comes out,it is going to be seen as bribe.”
“Dr. Ibrahim then said that he had seen Magu’s picture in Ambassador Shinkafi’s office and that Ambassador Shinkafi would be coming to Kaduna on that weekend, and that he can speak to him and let my father know whatever they discussed.”
The witness said Dr. Ibrahim later collected his number and said he would be calling for update in the case.
He said Dr. Ibrahim later called him many times and sent him a couple of text messages, which he ignored.
The witness said all that happened when Sani and Dr. Ibrahim visited his father’s residence in Kaduna were also recorded.
Mohammed told the court that the former senator met his father in November 2019 and that Sani told his father that the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) and the EFCC were rendering some help to him (his father) and that if a token of gratitude was given, it would be appreciated.
He said since the former senator collected $25,000 from his father, his father never heard from him again because he allegedly stopped answering his father’s calls and refused to call him.
Mohammed said Sani only got back to his father after he reported the case to the EFCC.
“My father returned from Saudi Arabia and went to the EFCC and that day, at the EFCC, was the first time Sani called him and said if he knew he (my father) was around he would have returned his money.”
The witness
He also told the court that his father handed the money to the EFCC as exhibit after Sani later returned it.
Under cross examination by defence lawyer, Abdul Ibrahim, Mohammed saidhe did not know whether his father had a case at the Supreme Court or the EFCC to have made him to give money to Sani.
Mohammed said he would not know what Sani told his father to prompt him to release such amount to him.
The witness said he was not present when his father gave money to Sani and when Sani returned the money.
Another witness, Fatima Asabe Umar, a Digital Forensic Analyst with the EFCC gave details of how he analysed the two phones belonging to Dauda and one Samsong phone belonging to Sani.
The witness said she extracted data, relating to voice calls, text messages, deleted text messages and audio and video recordings from the three phones.
The prosecution later tendered,through the witness, who. was PW8, a digital forensic hand written report, dated January 17, 2020, which contained the findings of her analysis of the three phones.
The witness said Sani consented to the examination of his phone by signing a consent form, a claim the defendant confirmed when his lawyer showed him a copy of the consent form which the witness brought our from her bag on the defence lawyer’s request.
At the conclusion of the evidence of the eighth prosecution witness, Justice Inyang Ekwo adjourned till Thursday for continuation of trial
