ONE of the six judges invited to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to face interrogation over allegations of money laundering and bribery, Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia reported herself to the anti-graft agency on Thursday evening.








It would be recalled that the embattled judge was invited for questioning on Tuesday, October 18, but unlike five of her colleagues, Mrs. Ofili-Ajumogobia refused to turn herself in.


She claimed on Wednesday that she could not report to the EFCC because she was admitted to the intensive care unit at the Golden Cross Hospital in Ikoyi, Lagos.


However, it was revealed that Mrs. Ofili-Ajumogobia was not in the hospital on that day after EFCC agents visited the hospital to verify her claim.


The hospital records showed that she had not been in the hospital since October 13, 2016.


Puzzled by her absence, EFCC operatives called the judge on the phone. She maintained that she was in the intensive car unit, but when the agents told her they could not find her in the hospital, she hung up.


To avoid interrogation, Mrs. Ofili-Ajumogobia had a doctor and a staff member of the hospital try to insert her name into hospital records on the days she claimed she was in the intensive care unit.


With the assistance of the hospital staff, Mrs. Ofili-Ajumogobia snuck into the hospital through a back door and tried to trick the anti-graft operatives by meeting in the room they had earlier visited. This action raised suspicions, leading to the EFCC to place her on security watch.


Mrs. Ofili-Ajumogobia then discharged herself from the hospital and reported herself to the EFCC office.


The doctor and staff who helped smuggle her into the hospital and insert her name into the records were also invited to the EFCC for questioning.