The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned Jude Okoye, the elder brother and former manager of the defunct music duo P-Square, over alleged money laundering involving ₦1.38 billion, $1 million, and £34,537.59.
Okoye was arraigned alongside his company, Northside Music Ltd, before Justice Alexander Owoeye at the Federal High Court in Lagos. The EFCC presented a seven-count charge against him, alleging that he acquired properties and conducted financial transactions with funds suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
One of the charges states that Okoye and Northside Music Ltd, in 2022, acquired a landed property worth ₦850 million at Parkview Estate, Ikoyi, Lagos, despite knowing or having reason to believe that the funds used for the purchase were linked to illegal activities. This, according to the EFCC, is in violation of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Another charge accuses Okoye of using a bureau de change to convert $1,019,762.87 from a Northside Music Ltd account in Access Bank to naira, which was then transferred to various accounts to conceal its source.
Okoye pleaded “not guilty” to all charges. Following his plea, EFCC prosecutor Larry Peters Aso requested a date for trial and urged the court to remand Okoye in a correctional facility pending trial.
However, Okoye’s lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, requested that his client be kept in EFCC custody instead, citing a pending bail application. The EFCC opposed this, arguing that its detention facilities were already overcrowded.
Justice Owoeye ruled that Okoye be remanded at the Ikoyi correctional facility and adjourned the case to February 28 for the bail hearing and April 14 for the commencement of the trial.
