Alleged N1.38bn Fraud: Court Adjourns Trial of Ex-P-Square Manager Jude Okoye to October 23

Justice A. Owoeye of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, adjourned further hearing in the ongoing trial of Jude Chigozie Okoye—elder brother and former manager of music duo Paul and Peter Okoye—till October 23, 2025.

Okoye is being prosecuted by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) alongside his company, Northside Music Limited, on a seven-count charge bordering on alleged money laundering to the tune of ?1.38 billion.

One of the counts reads:
“That you, Jude Okoye Chigozie, and Northside Music Limited, sometime in 2022, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did directly acquire a landed property known as No. 5 Tony Eromosele Street, Parkview Estate, Ikoyi, Lagos, worth ?850,000,000.00 (Eight Hundred and Fifty Million Naira only), which money you knew or reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 18 (2)(d) and punishable under Section 18 (3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”

Okoye pleaded not guilty to all charges during his arraignment on February 26, 2025.

At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, the first prosecution witness (PW1), Peter Obumuneme Okoye, under cross-examination by defence counsel Clement Onwuewunor SAN, stated that he never signed any cheques nor had access to the company’s accounts during his time with Northside Entertainment.

He acknowledged receiving funds from Northside’s Ecobank account but clarified that they were not royalty payments, as the account also received substantial revenue from endorsements and performances.

Peter further testified that he was unaware of the existence of Northside Music Limited—his brother’s company—until late 2022 and that he never received any payments from Lex Records during his affiliation with the label.

Following the proceedings, Justice Owoeye adjourned the matter to October 23 and November 10, 2025, for the continuation of the trial.