Alleged $2.2 Million Fraud: Judgment for Ex-NHIS Boss Set for July 24

Summary

• Former NHIS Executive Secretary, Dr. Femi Thomas, to know his fate on July 24 over alleged $2.2 million money laundering.
• EFCC says Thomas failed to prove legitimate source of funds, contradicting his own financial statements.
• Prosecution adopts final written addresses, urges court to convict both defendants.

Lagos, Nigeria – Justice Ayokunle Faji of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi has adjourned judgment to July 24, 2025, in the case involving Dr. Olufemi Martins Thomas, a former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), who is standing trial over alleged $2,198,900 money laundering.

Thomas is being tried alongside Kabiru Sidi, a Bureau De Change operator, on a seven-count amended charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). While Thomas faces six counts related to laundering and illegal cash transfers, Sidi is charged with making false statements to the EFCC.

According to one of the charges, Thomas allegedly procured his wife to disguise the origin of $2.2 million, a violation of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011.

Prosecuting counsel Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, told the court that both defendants’ final written addresses had been submitted and urged the court to convict them.

Iheanacho argued that the prosecution presented six witnesses, and Thomas’s no-case submission was overruled, even at the appellate level. “The defendant was required to show how he legitimately acquired the funds,” he stated.

Thomas had claimed the money came from his farming business, but documents submitted showed inconsistencies.

“His financial statement stated a N3.9 million profit in 2014, whereas he claimed N354 million net revenue in court,” Iheanacho pointed out. “Documentary evidence contradicting oral evidence renders both incredible and unreliable,” he added.

The prosecution also cited discrepancies in Thomas’s asset declaration, noting that while his Code of Conduct form listed ₦25 million annual income, the company’s records showed ₦5 million paid to directors for the entire year and no dollar transactions.

The court will deliver its judgment in the high-profile case on July 24, 2025.