Singer Peter Okoye has accused his elder brother and former manager, Jude Okoye, of diverting funds through a company secretly run with Jude’s wife.
According to TheCable Lifestyle, Peter appeared in court as the first prosecution witness in an ongoing trial filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Jude and Northside Music Limited. The case, which is before Justice A. Owoeye at the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, involves allegations of money laundering totaling N1.38 billion.
Peter shared that P-Square, the popular music group formed in 1997, disbanded in 2017 and later reunited in 2021. During the group’s career, Jude had full control over the finances, including all bank accounts.
He explained that before Jude took over as manager, the group had several others, including Chioma Ugochi and the late Bayo Odusami. Eventually, Peter and his twin brother, Paul, decided to hand over management to Jude under the company Northside Entertainment Limited.
Peter said problems began when he realized he didn’t have access to the group’s bank accounts in Ecobank, Zenith, and FCMB. He raised concerns about transparency and sought help from their lawyer, Festus Keyamo, now the Minister of Aviation.
He also mentioned how funding for a personal project—his home in Ikoyi—was suddenly stopped. When he questioned this, he was told, “As you leave P-Square, you leave the money.”
Peter later discovered the existence of a separate company, Northside Music Limited, which he hadn’t known about. This company, similar in name to their original firm, was owned by Jude and his wife, with her holding 80% and Jude holding 20%.
This discovery came while negotiating with potential buyers of P-Square’s music catalogue. He requested financial statements and backend access but was repeatedly denied by Jude.
He said even when Paul tried to mediate, he received no satisfactory answers. When he eventually got the backend details, they were altered and incomplete, significantly reducing the value of their music catalogue.
Peter also said account officers from the banks involved confirmed that Jude had instructed them not to provide him access. One of the officers told him that court action was the only way to get the records.
Eventually, Peter reported the case to the EFCC after a tax consultant informed him that Jude claimed no group activities had taken place since their split—an assertion Peter said was false, based on account statements showing ongoing payments from aggregators throughout 2017.
The case has been adjourned to June 4, 2025, for cross-examination
Article updated 6 days ago. Content is written and modified by multiple authors.
