The Federal High Court is set to deliver judgment in the money laundry trial of the former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode today.

Fani-Kayode, whose trial began in 2008 before Justice Ramat Mohammed, was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission( EFCC) to have laundered about N100 million when he was the Minister of

Culture and Tourism and subsequently the Minister of Aviation.

He was alleged to have carried out several transactions at various times and dealt in cash in excess of N500,000 without going through any financial institution.

Though the judgment was first scheduled for June 18 since the May 5, following the adoption of final written addresses and summary arguments by the lawyers to the EFCC, but the absence of the lead prosecuting council, Mr Festus Keyamo, made Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia adjourn the case to July 1.

Though the accused was in court on June 18, Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia, however, refused another lawyer that announced his appearance as prosecuting council and adjourned the judgment till July 1.

The allegedly laundered sum was reduced to N2.1 million on Nov. 17, 2014 after Ms. Ofili-Ajumogobia dismissed 38 of the 40-count charge levelled against Mr Fani-Kayode for lack of proof.

Mr Keyamo earlier in his argument pointed out that the object of the charge was that Mr Fani-Kayode transacted in cash sums above N500,000, which was the threshold stipulated by the Money Laundering

(Prohibition) Act.

Mr Keyamo had argued that Mr Fani-Kayode admitted making such transactions in his confessional statement of  Dec. 22, 2008 made to the EFCC.

He said, “In this statement, he admitted that he transacted in cash above N500,000. My Lord, this statement went in without objection by the accused person and the statement was voluntary.

“With the combination of this confessional statement and the statement of the IPO that investigated the allegation, we rely on all of this to submit that we have discharged our burden that monies were received by

the accused person in cash and were not done through any financial institution."

Mr Keyamo had argued that the prosecution had discharged its duty once it established that Mr Fani-Kayode transacted in large sums above the Money Laundering threshold, adding that it was left for Mr

Fani-Kayode to explain the source of the money.

“Once you cannot explain the source of the large sum of money found on you, you are guilty of money laundering. If the prosecution must show where the money is coming from, then the whole essence of the money laundering law is defeated.

“It is not in all cases that the burden of proof lies on the prosecution; the burden at this point shifts to the accused person,” Mr. Keyamo argued.

He further argued that the court should not simply believe that the large sums in cash that Mr Fani-Kayode allegedly transacted were proceeds of his father’s estate, saying the accused should have called

the tenant who paid the money as rent to testify in court and back it up with his statement of account.

But Mr. Fani-Kayode’s lawyer, Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN), in his summary argument, maintained that Mr Fani-Kayode made no confession to the EFCC, adding that the anti-graft agency failed to show that Mr. Fani-Kayode actually accepted a cash sum of N1million as alleged.

Mr. Adedipe said the EFCC also failed to show to the court the person who handed the cash sum to the accused person and however urged the court to discharge and acquit Fani-Kayode, saying the EFCC have no

case, but only trying to "show the world that they have caught a bigfish."