EFCC Picks New Date For Yahaya Bello’s Arraignment

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has reportedly picked a new date for the arraignment of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello. The anti-graft agency fixed June 27 for a hearing in the alleged money laundering case instituted by EFCC against Bello at the instance of the anti-graft agency’s lawyers. According to Daily Post, the new date was fixed without prior information from the defendant’s lawyers. At the resumed hearing on Thursday, counsel to Bello, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, told the court that the EFCC lawyers approached Aliyu AbdulWahab, SAN, who is the counsel for the defendant, that the earlier date, June 13 date, would not be convenient for them to proceed and that Wahab had to agree by way of convenience for another date to be set. He said he was surprised when he heard that EFCC lawyer, Rotimi Oyedepo was in court. He said, “They (EFCC) agreed that junior counsel would be sent to court today to formally pick a date. And the registry can confirm this. Kemi Pinhero, SAN, the lead counsel, has been calling us to say today is not convenient.” However, for the decision of the EFCC to seek an adjournment to a future date for his arraignment, Bello was said to be ready to appear in court on Thursday. Adedipe added, “Under 266 ACJA there are instances when defendants don’t need to come and this is one of them. “We came here to pick a date. Of what use will the defendant coming here be? It is the prosecuting counsel that approached us, we did not approach them. We have nothing to hide.”

Former Kwara Governor Arraigned In Court For Fraud

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has brought forward charges against the immediate past Kwara State Governor, Abdulfattah Ahmed.  Ahmed was arraigned on Friday at the Federal High Court in Ilorin, the state capital. The anti-graft agency alleged that Ahmed misappropriated the sum of N1,610,730,500.00, originally designated for the security and running costs of the state, to charter private jets during his tenure.  The charges include an alleged N10 billion fraud, with Ahmed facing a total of 12 counts. One of the counts accused Ahmed of converting N400 million from a N1 billion short-term loan received by the Kwara State Government from Ecobank Nigeria Limited.  The EFCC contended that this conversion was done fraudulently, diverting funds intended for ongoing state projects. The EFCC’s document stated, “Ahmed (while being the Governor of Kwara State) between 2015 and 2019 in Ilorin within the jurisdiction of this honourable court used an aggregate sum of N1,610,730,500, property of Kwara State Government, meant for the security and running cost of the Government of Kwara State, to charter private jets through Travel Messengers Limited on different occasions for your local travels and which sum you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of your unlawful act, to wit: criminal breach of trust or theft.” Abdulfattah Ahmed, who served as the state finance commissioner during Dr. Bukola Saraki’s governorship, succeeded Saraki in office and governed Kwara from 2011 to 2019.

UK Police Arraign Diezani Over Bribery Charges

A former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London over charges of bribery offences. The former minister had on August 22, charged to court by the United Kingdom (UK) government over an alleged £100,000 bribe. The UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) said they suspected Diezani had accepted bribes in return for awarding multi-million-pound oil and gas contracts. The Head of the National Crime Agency’s International Corruption Unit, Andy Kelly, said “We suspect Diezani Alison-Madueke abused her power in Nigeria and accepted financial rewards for awarding multi-million-pound contracts. “These charges are a milestone in what has been a thorough and complex international investigation.”