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Tag: Adoke

  • I was most demonised person during Jonathan’s regime – VP Shettima

    I was most demonised person during Jonathan’s regime – VP Shettima

    Vice-President Kashim Shettima, on Thursday in Abuja recounted his odeal under the administration of the former President Goodluck Jonathan.

    Shettima made the revelation at the public presentation of a book titled, ” OPL 245: Inside Story of the $1.3 billion Nigeria Oil Block, “authored by the former Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke.

    According to Shettima, in the last four years of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, I was the most demonized person, I was the public enemy number one.

    “There are two gentlemen seated here. Certain decisions are taken in a very rear peace circle.  The President, the Vice President,  the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

    ” In one of such conclaves, former President Goodluck Jonathan with whom we have sheath the sword and have now recalibrated our relationship was muting the idea of removing this Borno governor.

    ”Aminu Tambuwal, the then Speaker of the House of Representatives had the courage to tell the President that your Excellency, you don’t have the powers to remove an elected councillor.

    ”The President was still not convinced,  he muted the idea at the Federal Executive Council, ” Shettima said.

    The Vice-President also expressed his admiration to Mr Mohammed Adoke for his courage,  conviction and capacity to stand for what he believes in.

    ”He (Mr Adoke) told the then President that Mr President you do not have the powers to remove a sitting governor not even a councillor.

    ”They sought for the opinion of another SAN in the cabinet, Kabiru Turaki,  who said I’m concurring with the opinion of my senior colleague.

    ”That was how the matter was laid to rest but that was how my relationship with Mr Adoke and Aminu Tambuwal became eternally sealed. “

    Shettima also commended Adoke for the courage to forgive all those who had offended him in the course of his public duty.

    NAN reports that the 26-chapter book on the OPL 245, also known as Malabu oil deal scandal, centres on a 2011 agreement in which Royal Dutch Shell and Italy’s Eni paid $1.3 billion to acquire Nigeria’s deep-water oil licence.

    The oil block is believed to hold nine billion barrels of crude.

  • EFCC officer threatened me to indict Jonathan, Adoke, witness tells court

    EFCC officer threatened me to indict Jonathan, Adoke, witness tells court

    Mr. Aliyu Abubakar, a defence witness in the trial-within-trial of the former Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke told a Federal High Court, Abuja that an EFCC officer threatened him to indict former President Goodluck Jonathan in alleged money laundering.

    Abubakar, who is also a co-defendant in the suit, told Justice Inyang Ekwo while being led in evidence by his counsel, Wole Olanipekun, SAN, that the officer, Mr Bala Sanga, also threatened him to indict the minister.

    Adoke was the Minister of Justice during President Jonathan’s administration between April 6, 2010 and April 29, 2015.

    Aminu Lawal, the second prosecution witness in the trial-within-trial, had, on May 10, said that Abubakar was neither enforced to make statements nor induced to implicate others in the course of the investigation, and that he was never threatened to be detained.

    Lawal was part of the investigators who took the defendant’s statements on Dec. 31, 2019 and on Jan. 6, 2020.

    But at the resumed trial on Tuesday, Abubakar, a business mogul, told the judge that the extra-judicial statements he made on Dec. 31, 2019 and on Jan. 6, 2020 were not made voluntarily.

    He said on Dec. 31, 2019 when he was invited to the EFCC’s office, Sanga, threatened to detain him if he refused to make extra-judicial statement.

    Besides, Abubakar said on Jan. 6, 2022, Sanga, who introduced himself as the new prosecutor in the matter, told him that there was an evidence before him (Sanga) which showed that he (Abubakar) gave the sum of 20 million dollars to Adoke.

    Abubakar also told the court that Sanga informed him that there was another evidence which indicated that he (Abubakar) gave the sum of 50 million dollars to ex-President Jonathan.

    “On the 31st December, 2019, my lawyer, Ahmed Audu, came to me and said one Ibrahim Ahmed from EFCC called him that they needed clarification from me about this case.

    “I followed my lawyer to the EFCC office. When I got there, some of the EFCC’s staff like Ibrahim, Babaginda and others came in and told me that I must give a confessional statement.

    “They said that things have changed and somebody has to record me (on video), that his name is Bala Sanga.

    “He introduced himself as the new prosecutor in this case. He thanked me and said I should continue to cooperate with them and that they will help me if I continue to cooperate with them.

    “He then asked me questions. He asked my lawyer to write for me and I said no that I will not make any more statement because I had already made statements which are with them.

    “He said if I don’t, they will detain me,” Abubakar said.

    He said due to the fact that it was festive period then, he had to succumb to the officer’s instruction.

    “I realised the next day was January 1, 2020, that was why I decided that they should write for me,” he said.

    When Olanipekun asked Abubakar if he had ever met Sanga in the court before, he said: “Yes, I met him here and he is the prosecutor and the one that was investigating me.”

    Speaking on his experience at the anti-graft agency’s office, he said: “That day we went to the EFCC and they ask us to come the second day. Bala Sanga called me to one side that Alhaji, I want to help you in this case.

    “He (Sanga) asked how close I am to Adoke. He said you have to sacrifice somebody to be alive.

    “He said there is evidence before him which he will show me at the right time; that he heard information that I gave Adoke 20 million dollars.

    “I said what? How did it come?

    “He said may be because me and Adoke are from the same place and that that was why I did not want to say anything.

    “He also said that there is evidence before him that I gave Goodluck Jonathan 50 million dollars.

    “He said if I did not agree to cooperate with him, he would charge me to court.

    “So I said he should go ahead.”

    Abubakar said the argument by the anti-graft agency that nobody asked him to implicate anybody was untrue.

    Adoke’s counsel, Kanu Agabi, SAN, while crossed-examining Abubakar, asked him to reconfirmed his statement that Sanga told him to implicate Adoke and he answered in affirmative.

    Counsel for the EFCC, Offem Uket, during his cross-examination, told Abubakar that the statements he made on Dec. 31, 2019, and Jan. 6, 2020, were voluntarily made.

    He said in the video clip played in the open court in the last adjourned date, Abubakar did not protest against the directive by the agency’s officers on making the extra-judicial statements but the witness disagreed with Uket.

    Also, the second defence witness, Ahmed Audu, who is Abubakar’s lawyer, also testified in the matter after Abubakar was discharged from witness box.

    Audu said he wrote the statement on Abubakar’s behalf on Dec. 31, 2019.

    “Sanga came in that day and asked my name and I said Barrister Ahmed.

    ”He said he was the new prosecutor in this matter and he took over from one Aliyu Yusuf.

    “He said he needed some clarifications from us and my client rejected because he had written a number of statements over this matter.

    “Ibrahim said anything Sanga asked us to do we should do.

    “While we were there, we heard Magu (former EFCC’s chairman)’s siren coming in and I was even sweating and I felt guilty already.

    “I ask Ibrahim why did he say that anything he ask us to do do it.

    “That was how we started the statement. That was what happened that day.

    “After the statement, I ask Ahmed Ibrahim can I go with my client.

    “They released us around 7.30pm on that day and we protested that I will not sign and my client too.

    “But they said we will not go until we sign. So they ask us to come on Jan. 6, 2020,” he said.

    After Uket’s cross-examined Audu, Justice Ekwo adjourned the matter until Sept 28 for hearing.

    NAN

  • Just in: Ex-AGF Adoke gets court’s permission for medical trip

    Just in: Ex-AGF Adoke gets court’s permission for medical trip

    The Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday granted permission to a former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke (SAN), to travel for medical check-up at the United Arab Emirate, where he was in exile for about five years.

    Adoke had fled to the UAE shortly after leaving office in 2015.

    He returned to the country and was immediately arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission as he arrived the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on December 19, 2019.

    He has since been facing multiple charges, including money laundering, before various courts which had ordered the seizure of his passport as a bail condition.

    Ruling on Adoke’s application for permission to travel to the UAE on Friday, Justice Ekwo ordered the release of his passport to enable him travel to the foreign land on health grounds from December 15 and return on or before January 10, 2021.

    Already, his trial alongside a businessman, Aliyu Abubakar, has been scheduled to resume before the court on January 11.

    In granting Adoke’s request on Friday, Justice Ekwo rejected the objection raised by the prosecuting counsel, Bala Sanga.

    The judge upheld the contention of Adoke’s lawyer, Kanu Agabi (SAN), saying such application was within the discretion of the court to grant.

    He said the application was granted allowing the ex-AGF to travel to UAE on health grounds.

    The EFCC accused Adoke and Abubakar of using large sums of money, which allegedly formed part of their unlawful activities, and accepting the amounts exceeding stated threshold outside a financial institution in violation of the money laundering law.

  • Court cautions EFCC against breaching provisions of law in Adoke’s trial

    Court cautions EFCC against breaching provisions of law in Adoke’s trial

    The Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday, cautioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against an act contrary to the provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) in the trial of former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, SAN.
    Justice Inyang Ekwo gave the warning during the beginning of trial of Adoke and co-defendant, Aliyu Abubakar, in Abuja.
    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Justice Ekwo had, on Aug. 4, adjourned till Tuesday for trial shortly after Adoke and Abubakar were re-arraigned by the EFCC on 14 amended counts of money laundering bordering on the controversial OPL 245 transactions, also known as Malabu Oil Deal.
    The judge had, at the last sitting, expressed sadness that the anti-graft agency went ahead to file an amended charge few days to the commencement of the trial.
    Again, the scheduled proceedings were stalled on Tuesday due to the failure of the EFCC to disclose the name of its proposed first witness in the list of witnesses and file the summary of the witness’s statement in the proof of evidence served ahead on the defendants.
    Shortly after the proceedings resumed, the EFCC’s Lawyer, Bala Sanga, called an official of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Clement Osagie, as the first prosecution witness.
    Immediately, the witness was put on oath, Abubakar’s lawyer, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, objected to Osagie giving evidence.
    “We are constrained at this juncture to raise an objection to this witness, Mr Clement Osagie giving any evidence because of the failure of the prosecution to comply with the mandatory provision of Section 397(1) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) with regard to the imperative necessity of the proof of evidence served on the defendant to include the list of witnesses, among other things,” he said.
    Ojo argued that the failure to include the name of the witness on the list and serve the defence with the summary of his statement was a breach of the right of the defence to fair hearing.
    “A fair trial is the trial that is conducted in accordance with the law. The whole essence of Section 379 (1) of ACJA is to ensure that the defence is not caught unaware.
    “We do hereby insist on the right of the 2nd defendant to be served with the names and summary of the statements of the witnesses,” he said.
    Responding, Sanga said the non-inclusion of the the documents requested by the defendants in the proof of evidence served by the prosecution was immaterial.
    He said this was so because the witness was a witness on subpoena and that was indicated in the proof of evidence served ahead on the defendants that an official of the CBN would testify as prosecution witness.
    Justice Ekwo dismissed the prosecution’s argument, saying the provision of Section 397(1) of ACJA cited by the defence clearly stipulated that the documents must be provided.
    The judge, who frowned against the manner the EFCC’s counsel was handling the trial, said he was lucky that the defence opened up at the early stage of the proceedings and did not wait till the end to “pull the carpet “
    “Unfortunately, in criminal proceedings, I am not allowed to penalise, I would have done so,” Ekwo added.
    The judge then gave the prosecution 24 hours to file and serve all the necessary documents demanded by the defendants and adjourned until Aug. 13 for continuation of trial.
  • FG accuses Ex-AGF Adoke, Aliyu of laundering $23.3m, N3.077b in amended charge

    FG accuses Ex-AGF Adoke, Aliyu of laundering $23.3m, N3.077b in amended charge

    The Federal Government has accused ex-Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Bello Adoke and a businessman, Aliyu Abubakar of laundering about $23,352,100.00 and N3, 077,318,800.00 in an amended 14-count charge filed against them.

    The amended charge, marked: FHC/ABJ/93/39/2017 replaced an earlier seven-count charge, with same number, on which Adoke and Aliyu were arraigned before Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja on June 17 this year.

    Both defendants were re-arraigned on the amended charge before the same judge on Tuesday, to which they pleaded not guilty when all the counts were read to them by an official of the court.

    Justice Ekwo subsequently adjourned till August 11 for the prosecution to open its case by calling its first set of witnesses.

    In the old charge, six counts were directed at Adoke, while only one was directed at Aliyu. But, in the amended one, seven counts are directed at each of the defendants.

    Some of the counts against Adoke read:

    *That you Mohammed Bella Adoke sometime in September 2013 in Abuja, made a cash payment of the sum of $2,267,400.00 to one Rislanudeen Muhammed, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to the combined effect 01 section 16 (1) (d) and 01 section 1(3) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 16 (2)(b) of the same Act.

    *That you Mohammed Bello Adoke sometime in September 2013 in Abuja, did cause to be made a structured cash payment in 13 tranches of a sum of money totaling N50.000, 000.00 into your Unity Bank Plc Account No. 0020153263, which sums you knew s part of an unlawful act, to wit: the payment of an amount exceeding stated threshold amounts outs1de a financial Institution. Intending to conceal the origins of the said funds, contrary to section 15 (2 )(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 as amended and punishable under semen 15 (3) o! the same Act.

    *That you Mohammed Bella Adoke sometime n September 2013 in Abuja did cause to be made a structured cash payment in 22 tranches of a sum of money totaling N80.000, 000.00 into your Unity Bank Plc Account No. 0020153263 which sums you knew is part of an unlawful act, to wit: the payment of an amount exceeding stated threshold amounts outside financial Institution, intending to conceal the origin o! The said funds, contrary to section 15(2 )(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 as amended and punishable under section 15(3) of the same Act.

    Some of the counts against Aliyu read:

    *That you Aliyu Abubakar sometime between September 2013 to October 2013 in Abuja, disguised the origins of the total sum of $12.084.700.00 when you reasonably ought to have known that the funds formed part of an unlawful activity to wit: acceptance of an amount exceeding stated threshold amounts outside a financial institution, intending to conceal the origins of the said funds, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section (15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 15(3) of the same Act.

    *That you Aliyu Abubakar, sometime in September 2013 in Abuja, accepted a cash payment of the sum of $4,000,000.00 from Farsman Holdings Limited, through Abdulhakeem Uthman Mustapha, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to the combined effect of section 16(1)(d) and of section 1(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.

    *That you Aliyu Abubakar, sometime In October 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, accepted a cash payment of the sum of $3,000,000.00 from Farsman Holdings Limited. through Abdulhakeem Uthrnan Mustapha, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to the combined effect of section 16(1)(d) and of section 1(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.

  • EFCC speaks on dropping money laundering charges against ex-AGF Adoke

    EFCC speaks on dropping money laundering charges against ex-AGF Adoke

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Friday debunked some media reports claiming that the Commission has dropped charges of money laundering against former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke.

    In a press release signed by its Head, Media & Publicity, Dele Oyewale, and made available to press, EFCC made it clear that “Mr. Adoke is standing trial in two separate courts: Federal High Court, Abuja before Justice Inyang Ekwo in Suit Number: FHC/ABJ/CR/39/2017 and FCT High Court, Gwagwalada before Justice Idris Kutigi in Suit Number: FCT/CR/151/2020.”

    According to the anti-corruption agency, Adoke was re-arraigned alongside an Abuja-based businessman, Aliyu Abubakar before Justice Ekwo on June 17, 2020, on a seven-count charge, bordering on money laundering.

    The re-arraignment, it said, was occasioned by the transfer of the case from Justice Binta Nyako, before whom he was originally arraigned on February 8, 2020.

    Adoke was equally arraigned before Justice Kutigi alongside others on January 23, 2020 on 42-count charges bordering on the Malabu Oil scam.

    “There is another subsisting case involving Malabu Oil & Gas Limited, Aliyu Abubakar and five companies allegedly involved in money laundering charges before Justice Ekwo.

    “They were arraigned on Wednesday, July 1, 2020 in Suit Number: FHC/ABJ/CR/268/2016“, the commission said.

    It described media reports about the removal of Adoke’s name from the “Wanted Persons’ List” by the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) as unnecessary and misleading.

    It added that since Adoke has been arrested, and he is currently facing trial already in Nigeria, he could not continue to be on a “Wanted Persons’ List”.

    “The EFCC wishes to reiterate its commitment to global best practices in its operations and would not be distracted from its assigned mandate of ridding the nation of all forms of economic and financial crimes”, the commission assured.

  • Alleged Money laundering: EFCC re-arraigns ex-AGF Adoke

    Former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Mohammed Adoke, SAN, on Tuesday, re-arraigned before a Federal High Court, Abuja on money laundering related charges.
    Adoke was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) alongside an Abuja businessman, Aliyu Abubakar, on a seven-count charge.
    In a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/39/2017, the EFCC is charging Adoke on six counts while Abubakar is arraigned on one-count charge.
    Both defendants were alleged to have committed the alleged offences, involving about N400 million, in Abuja in Sept. 2013.
    Adoke was accused of receiving the United States (U.S.) dollar equivalent of N300 million from Abubakar, and paying the dollar equivalent of N367,318,800 to one Usman Mohammed Bello, among other charges.
    He was also accused of using N300 million which was alleged to be part of the proceeds of unlawful activities, acts classified as offences under the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011.
    The ex-AGF who served during the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, was equally accused of making “structured cash payments in 22 tranches” amounting to N80 million, and another of such structured payments in 13 tranches, estimated at N50 million, into his Unity Bank account.”
    On his part, Abubakar was accused of making a payment of US dollar equivalent of N300 million into Adoke’s account, in violation of the money laundering law.
    However, both defendants pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to them by an official of the court.
    Lead prosecution lawyer, Bala Sanga, said he would have applied for the remand of the defendants in prison, but for the reality of the coronavirus pandemic.
    Sanga, who noted that the prosecution was not served any bail application on behalf of any of the defendants, said he would not object should lawyers to the defendants apply for bail orally.
    Former AGF, Kanu Agabi, SAN, who appeared for Adoke, commended Sanga for his disposition.
    Also, ex-AGF, Akin Olujinmi, SAN, who appeared for Abubakar, also spoke n the same vein.
    Agabi and Olujinmi noted that the case was transferred from Justice Binta Nyako’s court, where the defendants were arraigned in February and granted bail.
    They prayed the court to allow the defendants to continue to enjoy the bail earlier granted them, a request the new judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo acceded to.
    Sanga later prayed the court for a short adjournment for the commencement of trial to enable the prosecution prove its case.
    “We hope to open and close this case on time.
    “Our witnesses are within jurisdiction, and we do not intend to call more than five witnesses,” he said.
    Justice Ekwo then adjourned until Aug. 3 for trial.

  • BREAKING: Court grants ex-AGF Adoke bail

    A Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Mohammed Adoke (SAN) and his co-defendant, Aliyu Abubakar.

    Justice Binta Nyako, in a ruling on Monday, granted both men bail on the conditions attached to an earlier bail granted them by a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Gwagwalada, before which they were earlier arraigned on another charge.

    The ruling by Justice Nyako on Monday was in respect of their arraignment earlier on Monday on a six-count charge of money laundering and related offences, brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    The High Court of the FCT, presided over by Justice Abubakar Kutigi, had in a ruling on January 30 this year, granted bail to Adoke and Abubakar at N50million and a surety each.

    Each of the sureties, Justice Kutigi said, must be resident in Abuja and has property in Abuja which must worth the bail sums imposed on the defendants individually.

    The defendants were also to deposit their travel documents with the court and must not travel outside the court’s jurisdiction without its permission.

    Justice Nyako adopted these convictions in her ruling a moment ago.

  • Alleged money laundering: I prefer Kuje Prisons to EFCC’s custody, Ex-AGF Adoke tells Court

    Mohammed Adoke, Nigeria’s ex-Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, (SAN), on Monday, said he preferred to be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre to the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

    Mike Ozekhome (SAN), spoke on Adoke’s behalf shortly after he was arraigned on fresh money laundering charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday.

    Adoke was arraigned alongside Aliyu Abubakar, who was accused of paying dollar equivalent of N300m in Adoke’s account in September 2013 in violation of the Money Laundering Act.

    Ozekhome was arguing his client’s bail application when he noted that his client was produced in court by the EFCC from the Federal Medical Centre near Jabi, Abuja, where he had been admitted for treatment.

    According to reports, after the defendants took their pleas, the prosecuting counsel, Bala Sanga, urged the court to remand them in the custody of the EFCC pending when their bail applications would be heard and determined.

    The defence lawyers immediately noted that they already filed their bail applications and had been responded to by the prosecution.

    Ozekhome appealed to the the court to grant bail to Adoke in liberal and affordable terms and conditions, saying that his client would prefer to be remanded in the Kuje Correctional Centre, instead of the custody of the EFCC.

    “The first defendant voluntarily returned to the country. There is his statement attached to show that he returned to the country voluntarily. He did not run away. We have attached an exhibit to show that he went for his Masters’ study abroad.

    “We have deposed to the affidavit about his health conditions. The prosecution themselves brought him to court from the Federal Medical Centre near Jabib in Abuja, this morning. We also plead that he be taken to the Kuje Correction Centre, a euphemism for Kuje prison pending when he meets his bail conditions to avoid the mental psychological strictures he goes through in the custody of the EFCC.

    “My lord we pray that he be granted bail in liberal and affordable terms and conditions so that he can take care of himself. The law says, ‘come and stand trial’, it did not say ‘come and sit trial or come and prostate trial. My lord as you can see, the first defendant who is less than 60 is already bent with age,” he said.

  • Adoke fails to meet bail conditions, remains in EFCC custody

    Former Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Mohammed Adoke (SAN), is still in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), 24 hours after he was granted security bail.

    A source at the EFCC told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on Friday in Abuja that the former justice minister is being detained at the commission’s headquarters in the federal capital.

    Acting spokesman of the anti-graft agency, Mr Tony Orilade, who confirmed the information, said that Adoke was still being held because he had not fulfilled his bail conditions.

    “He has yet to fulfill his bail conditions as we speak, hence he still in our custody,” Orilade said, when contacted at 3.55 p.m. on Friday.

    On Jan. 23, the EFCC arraigned Adoke in an FCT High Court to answer 42 charges bordering on alleged fraud in the $1.1 billion Malabu oil deal.

    Adoke was arraigned alongside Aliyu Abubakar, Rasky Gbinigie, Malabu oil and Gas Limited, Agip, a subsidiary of Eni, Shell Nigeria Ultra deep Limited, and Shell Nigeria Exploration Production Company Limited.

    He is accused of receiving bribe worth N300 million from Aliyu over the deal for OPL 245, a charge he denies.

    On Thursday, the presiding judge, Justice Abubakar Kutigi, granted him bail in the sum of N50 million with a surety who must have a landed property in the FCT.

    Aliyu, who is the second defendant, also got a N50 million bail with one surety, while Gbinigie, the third defendant, got a N10 million bail.

    All sureties must be resident within the jurisdiction of the court, have landed property in the FCT, and must provide evidence of tax clearance for the last three years.

    The judge also ordered the defendants to submit their international passports to the court and also sign an undertaking to always attend trial sessions.