A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Maitama, Abuja, has rejected key evidence presented by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the ongoing N2.8 billion fraud trial involving former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika.
The trial judge, Sylvanus Oriji, ruled on Thursday that extra-judicial statements made by two co-defendants in the case could not be admitted as evidence.
The affected defendants are Mr Sirika’s daughter, Fatima Sirika, and her husband, Jalal Hamma.
According to the court, “The statements of the second and third defendants (Ms Sirika and Jalal Hamma) made at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) office are inadmissible for non-compliance with the provision of Section 15(4) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015.”
The ruling followed objections raised by the defence team. The lawyers argued that the statements were not voluntarily made. They claimed the documents were obtained under pressure. This led the court to conduct a trial-within-trial to determine their validity.
During the hearing, an EFCC investigator, Adekunle Odofin, told the court that both defendants willingly wrote their statements. He said Fatima Sirika visited the EFCC office on February 26, 2024, with two lawyers and submitted her statement voluntarily. He added that Jalal Hamma also honoured an invitation the next day and wrote his own statement in the presence of a lawyer.
However, the investigator admitted that the sessions were not recorded on video.
Counsel to the EFCC, Oluwaleke Atolagbe, maintained that the process complied with the law. He argued that video recording of statements is not compulsory when a suspect gives a statement willingly. He pointed out that the law uses the word “may,” suggesting discretion.
The defence disagreed. They insisted that the law makes video recording necessary in such situations. They argued that failure to comply renders the statements invalid.
In his ruling, Justice Oriji disagreed with the EFCC’s position. He held that the use of “may” in the law does not remove the duty of law enforcement officers to follow proper procedure. He concluded that there was clear non-compliance with the relevant provision of the ACJA.
With that, the court rejected the statements, which were considered central to the prosecution’s case.
Following the ruling, defence counsel to Jalal Hamma, Sanusi Musa, drew the court’s attention to an earlier application filed in October 2025. The application seeks to strike out the entire proof of evidence presented by the EFCC.
He argued that the prosecution’s case would collapse if the application succeeds, as the proof of evidence forms the backbone of the trial.
The prosecution, however, said it was not ready to proceed on the application.
The court subsequently adjourned the matter to June 2 for continuation of proceedings.
The EFCC is prosecuting Hadi Sirika alongside his daughter, her husband, and their company, Al Buraq Global Investment Limited, on a six-count charge bordering on contract fraud amounting to N2.8 billion.
The anti-graft agency alleges that the former minister used his position to award contracts to a company linked to his family members while he supervised the aviation ministry between 2015 and 2023 under former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Part of the charges includes the alleged award of a N1.5 billion contract for the Katsina Airport apron extension to the company. The EFCC also claims that about N1.3 billion was traced to Mr Sirika as proceeds of unlawful activity.
The commission said the actions violate provisions of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) Act.
All the defendants have pleaded not guilty, and the trial continues.
