Former Aviation Minister Stella Oduah has indicated her willingness to refund money allegedly taken from government coffers as part of a move to settle a ₦2.5 billion fraud case through a plea bargain.
The development emerged during proceedings at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday, where the former minister and her co-defendant signalled their intention to negotiate a plea agreement with the Federal Government.
The Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, told the court that the defendants had approached the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation to initiate talks.
According to him, part of the arrangement includes refunding funds believed to have been unlawfully obtained.
“They have made moves to refund certain amount of money into the government coffers. What is left is the confirmation of receipt of the bank draft by the government,” Oyedepo said.
Oduah’s counsel, Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), confirmed that discussions on the proposed settlement were ongoing, while the lawyer to the second defendant, Favour Osuanya, also acknowledged that plea bargain negotiations were underway.
Justice Hamza Muazu subsequently adjourned the matter until March 26 for an update on the negotiations.
Oduah and her co-defendant, Gloria Odita, were earlier arraigned over an alleged ₦2.4 billion fra¥d linked to contracts awarded during Oduah’s tenure as aviation minister in 2014.
Prosecutors allege the defendants conspired to obtain ₦2.469 billion from the Federal Ministry of Aviation through two companies by falsely claiming the funds were meant for “Cost of Technical Supervision” and “Security Integrated and Logistics Support Services.”
The government also accused Oduah of dishonestly authorising the transfer of funds meant for a security contract, an act prosecutors say breached her official trust.
