Entertainment
Peter of P-Square testifies against brother, Jude in alleged N1.38bn fraud
The lingering face-off among the three brothers- Peter, Paul and Jude Okoyes of P-Square label has taken a different dimension as Peter testified against the elder brother and former manager, Jude Okoye before Justice A. Owoeye of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos
Peter through his lawyer, Afolabi I, had dragged his ex-manager, Jude alongside, his company, Northside Music Limited to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, over alleged N1.38bn fraud.
The Head, Media and Publicity of EFCC Dele Oyewale in a statement said Jude Okoye is standing trial on a seven-count charge bordering on money laundering and fraud.
Oyewale said 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 form part of proceeds of unlawful act and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) and punishable under Section 18 (3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”
He pleaded “not guilty” to the charges when they were read to him, upon his arraignment on February 26, 2025.
Led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Aso Larry’s Peters, Peter said: “The group, P-Square started sometime in 1997. But in 2017, it was disbanded. We stayed apart for about five years. But in November 2021, the group came back.
“Before Jude became our Manager, we had several managers, including Chioma Ugochi, who managed us when we were in the secondary school and in the University; and the late Bayo Odusami of Mbuntu music, who managed us for five years.
“Thereafter, my twin brother and I managed the band for a couple of months before we decided that he (Jude) would manage us and Northside Entertainment Limited.
“So, we continued running our business. But we were always having issues about how he was running the business. The issues were mainly about the fact that he was the sole signatory to all our bank accounts in Ecobank, Zenith and FCMB.
“These issues lasted for a couple of months. I didn’t have access to the accounts until the current Minister of Aviation, Mr. Festus Keyamo, SAN, who was our lawyer, said we needed a sharing formula.”
While giving further evidence, he recalled an incident when the brothers were building their houses in Ikoyi, saying, “The funding of the house project was by Northwest Entertainment Ltd. But they just stopped financing my house for six months.
“The accounts were owned by the company, while Jude was the only signatory to all the accounts. At some, I approached him and my twin brother, Paul, to know why they stopped financing my project. But what I heard from them was ‘As you leave P-square, you leave the money’.
“With that comment, I had to approach our lawyer, Keyamo.
“All our money is in Northside Entertainment, and he is the sole signatory.
“Along the line, I discovered that there’s a company similar to ours, Northside Music Limited.
“In 2022, I discovered this when some people wanted to acquire our albums. These individuals demanded our statements of account to know how much the albums were generating monthly. The reason is that I didn’t have access to ‘backend’, which could be traced through a Northside account and through the aggregators (these are people you engage to know when they play your music on any medium, so you get paid). I then demanded that I wanted to know the backend. But he refused.
“Then, I went to my twin brother, Paul, who replied thus: ‘You know, I don’t know anything about it, but Jude.’
“When I suggested we go to see him, he said he would go and meet him, so I left him.”
He further told the court that when he approached Paul a few weeks after about it, Paul told him he had discussed the issue with Jude.
Giving further testimony, he told the court that : “ Thereafter, I approached Jude again. He told me that my share of the money was with some people in South Africa. I told him I was not asking for money , but the backend and the statements of the account. But there was no positive response.”
Following this discussion, he said he then reached out to the accounts officers in both Eco Bank and Zenith Bank, respectively, but he did not get satisfactory response from them.
According to him , “The account officer at the Zenith Bank later told me that Jude told him not to send it to me. The officer added that the only way I could get it was through the court.
“I, however, discovered that the aggregators handling P-square’s Music Company were the same persons handling Paul and Peter. So, I approached Paul and told him to give them the albums of P-Square. But Jude and Paul were not comfortable with that.”
Also, Peter told the court that both Jude and Paul subsequently allowed him to give the catalogue to Mad Solution and he was assured that he would start receiving money after three months.
He said: “Three months after, I received over $22,000 USD. I was also told that both Jude and Paul had been paid.
“Until I called, I did not have an idea of a company called Northside music. I decided not to meet Jude over it. But when I approached Paul if he knew about Northside Music, he said I should check the album by Cynthia Morgan, who was then Jude’s artiste.
“When I checked Cynthia Morgan’s album, it was Northside Incorporation and not Northside Music. I then approached Jude for the same backend. He told me that it was going to take three and half months to retrieve the catalogue.
“And then forwarded the catalogue to me. My new management now sent it to people who wanted to buy it.”
According to him, “By the time it was sent to me, it only bore numbers and not figures.
“They responded that the backend had been tampered with, which suggested that the people who offered $8000 USD could not offer $500 USD,owing to the fact that the numbers had reduced.
“I went to the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) site, and discovered that the Directors of Northside Music were Jude Okoye and his wife. I also discovered that Jude’s wife owned 80%, while Jude owned 20%.
“On the backend, I was unable to get anything because it had been tampered with. One of those interested in buying the catalogue came to my house and invited Paul . But his response was that ‘I know Peter has told you this…When he came back after an hour, he told me that he was tired of all this and that I could do my worst.’
“But when I checked the statements of accounts from January 1, to December 2017, I discovered that those who paid money to the Access Bank account were the aggregators.”
Entertainment
“N500 million is far from your eyes” – Zlatan hits back at Portable for disputing his N500 million account claim
Rapper Zlatan Ibile has fired back at Portable for tackling him over his N500m claim.
Hours ago, Zlatan turned heads as he flaunted a N504 million balance in his wallet.
Reacting, Portable doubted his claims, saying a musician can’t have that much money in his account. He said Zlatan isn’t the owner of the money, and if he does truly own it, he is either involved in money laundering or doing some shady business.
In another video, he said he has seen N500 million before, has spent more than that, and will soon become a Fanta ambassador and receive such an amount as an endorsement fee.
Responding to him, Zlatan threw shots at Portable, saying such an amount is above him.
“With all the soap and Fanta, N500m still go far for my guy eye”.
In an interview on Echo Room, he called Zlatan, an upcoming artist and questioned which song he sings. Portable revealed that his car dealer told him he shouldn’t have replied to the rapper because he wasn’t worth it and was only using him for clout.
Refreshing your memory, Portable fell out with Zlatan after he accused him of sabotaging his relationship with Davido. According to Portable, he was in the United States searching for a foreign artist to feature when he got a call from Davido inviting him to hang out. The pop sensation shared that it was during his time with Davido that Zlatan told the Grammy nominee to be careful with associating with him.
Recall that in June, last year, a week after Davido treated him to a dinner and gifted a luxury shoe, Portable had blasted him, claiming he gave him bad advice during their linkup. He noted how the music star is signed to Sony Music, yet told him not to sign to the label but should rather sign to Empire and collect advance. He stated that the same Grammy Davido is chasing, he is also chasing it.
Following his draggings, Davido had unfollowed him on Instagram, and this enraged Portable, who stated that if Davido’s rival, Wizkid, had featured him in a song, he wouldn’t be begging the singer.
Nollywood actor and activist, Stanley Ajemba, popularly known as Stanley Ontop, has called out actress, Regina Daniels, over her alleged reconciliation with husband, Senator Ned Nwoko.
Recall that news of the reconciliation surfaced online nearly a year after the couple’s messy separation over alleged maltreatment and domestic abuse.
The news was further fueled after a video showing Regina at Ned’s house went viral on social media with many Nigerians, including celebrities who supported her during her crisis with the senator, expressing their disappointment.
Reacting to the video, the actress’ sister, Destiny Daniels, in a post on her Instagram story, debunked the reconciliation rumours, stating that Regina was in Ned’s house to visit her kids.
Speaking amid the controversy, Stanley Ontop who first released a viral video of Regina Daniels in distress after alleged abuse by the senator, called out the actress for disappointing her supporters.
Narrating how he was nearly arrested by the senator for supporting Regina and her family during the dispute, Stanley vowed never to intervene in any marital crisis again.
Tagging Ned Nwoko as ‘oppressor’, the actor in a series of Instagram videos on Sunday, said, “Hey guys, I know that you people have been waiting for my video to come and explain what happened, what’s really going on, like Ontop are you aware? Is it true that Regina has gone back to the husband?
“Here is my own story because I was very very angry. In fact, all the activists I brought into this matter to support Regina are angry with me now because I gave them my words that she’s not going back to that house. Now every one of them has been calling me on the phone saying Ontop see what you brought me into.
“I almost went to prison because of this case. I was the one that posted the video of where they were harassing Regina at Ned’s house. I was almost arrested because they were looking for me to be arrested. Now, let’s say you didn’t go there to stay, let’s agree that you went there to see your children, and you were that relaxed?
“Why was I not aware about your visit to your kids? Why didn’t you tell your brother so that your brother will tell me since I’m friends with your brother? I couldn’t sleep last night, I cried. See person wey I dey support. Now Nigerians are dragging you, they are dragging me.
“You didn’t go there to see your children. You don settle with Ned. Me and you know say you didn’t go there to see your children, you don settle with Ned. There’s nothing you will tell me that I will believe. This is nonsense. I almost went to prison because of this case. My picture and information are still in Maitama police station. Now, you went to settle with your oppressor. I’m making this video so that everybody will know that I’m not aware, I don’t give consent.”
The development came nine months after Ned publicly vowed never to take the actress back as his wife.
Nollywood actress Ruth Kadiri has addressed death reports about her circulating online.
In a video she shared online, she made it known that she is alive, safe and wasn’t involved in an accident. Kadiri urged her fans to help report pages carrying such news.
The mother of two expressed sadness at the extent to which people go to hurt and wish death on another. She noted that she stays in her lane and admonished them to leave her alone.
“I am alive!! Please help me report. Please, I’m begging you, help me report it!!
Any page that carries such news.
I am really sad at the extent to which some people will go on this social media space to hurt and wish death on another person. I stay in my lane. Leave me alone. I beg you all. It’s really becoming tiring and sad”.
The rate of death news about celebrities has become alarming.
Toyin Abraham warned TikTokers posting RIP on her pictures. She said she would make a scapegoat of one of them and prayed against death for her and her family.
Earlier this year, Yul Edochie had reacted to the death rumours about his father, Pete Edochie. He hailed him as his man for life and the Lion of Africa, declaring that his father would live beyond 100 years. Shutting down the death rumours, Yul said his father is alive, hale, and hearty.
Also addressing the rumours, Yul’s elder brother, Leo Edochie, shut them down, making it clear that his father is alive, strong, and healthy. He told those spreading the false reports that his father will live long and remain in good health.
Veteran, Chiwetalu Agu shut down rumours of his death with a video of himself living his best life – eating chicken and drinking wine. The veteran stated that he will live life until God calls him home, which isn’t happening anytime soon. He stated that till then, he will enjoy and let the fake bloggers cry.
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