A former Group Executive Director of Union Bank Plc., Austine Obigwe, yesterday, testified before the Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, detailing how he wrote off a $2.3 million debt owed by Arik Air to his private company, Staal.

Obigwe is one of the witnesses of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that appeared as a prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of the former Managing Director of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Ahmed Kuru, and four others, who are standing trial over alleged financial misappropriation amounting to N76 billion and $31.5 million and so on.

They all pleaded not guilty to the charges, and Justice Mojisola Dada subsequently granted them bail in the sum of N20 million each with one surety in like sum.

During cross-examination yesterday, he accepted that Arik was an irresponsible, badly run, immoral company, which also owed him a whopping $2.3 million, which he had to write off because of his business relationship with the promoter of Arik Air Limited.

The witness also confirmed that following his exit from Union Bank, he formally became a consultant to Arik Air and other companies.

But when asked whether the founder of Arik Air, Johnson Arumemi-Ikhide, was a personal acquaintance, he responded in the affirmative, saying that although he currently has no formal relationship with the airline, he maintains a relationship with Arumemi-Ikhide, who is also his church member.

Also, when asked about the airline’s compliance with its loan obligations, Obigwe testified that during his tenure at Union Bank, there were no complaints from other financial institutions suggesting that Arik Air was defaulting on its loan obligations.

He also confirmed that to the best of his knowledge, Arik Air was servicing its loan with Union Bank during his tenure.

Responding to a letter dated April 23, 2009, allegedly written by AMCON to Union Bank concerning a N46.11 billion debt owed by Arik Air, the witness denied knowledge of the letter, even though he was still in the service of the bank at the time, and was the Group Executive Director whose directorate supervised the Arik transaction.

He said: “I can only speak for the period I was there. When I was at Union Bank, Arik Air was one of the best companies.”

Meanwhile, the matter was adjourned till June 4, 2025, for the continuation of the trial.