Court grants NAMA boss, others N20m bail each
The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos Tuesday granted the managing director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, Engineer Abdulsalam Ibrahim and six other accused persons bail with the sum of N20million each with one sureties in like sum over N6.8bn fraud.
This came as the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) Tuesday, re-arraigned Abdulsalam and six other persons over alleged stealing and conversion of the agency’s money amounting to N6,850,447, 609.90.
The anti- graft commission had last week Thursday arraigned the NAMA boss, three directors of the agency and the wife of one of the directors.
The other accused persons are: Adegorite Olumuyiwa, Agbolade Segun, his wife, Joy Ayodele Adegorite, who is the Managing Director of Multeng Travels and Tours Limited, Clara Aliche, and two Limited Liability companies Randville investment limited, Multeng Travels and Tours Limited alleged to have been used as conduit pipe to defraud the agency.
While the other accused persons included in the amended charge are: Bola Akinribido and Sesebor Abiodun.
The matter was listed for hearing of the bail applications of the defendants, yesterday, but the prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo informed the court that he came with a 24 count amended charge and urged the court to allow the charge to be read to the accused persons again.
According to him, two other defendants were included in the amended charge and the defendants counsels did not oppose the application.
He also told the court that he had been served with bail application of the defendants adding that he is not contending with the accused being granted bail but urged the court to allow trial to commence immediate.
The presiding judge, Babs Kiewumi granted the request and the charge was read to the defendant who took their plea.
In the first count of the amended charge, EFCC alleged that the first to fifth defendants and one Nnamdi Udoh still at large between January 31, 2013 and September 3, 2015. with intent to defraud and by false pretence conspired together to induced the NAMA to deliver the sum of N2,847,523,975 to Delosa Limited, Air Sea Delivery Ltd and Sea Schedules Systems Ltd under the pretence that the said sum represented the cost of clearing consignments belonging to the agency.
The offence was said to have contravened Section 8(a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other fraud related offences Act, 2016 and punishable under section 1(3) of the same Act.
The commission also alleged in the charge that the defendants on December 19, 2014, forged a document titled ” Guaranty Trust Bank Plc Apapa 2-Burma road NCS Payment Acknowledgement receipt number: 05821082014177651″
Two of the defendants Sesebor Abiodun and Bola Akinribido were only charge parts of the 24 count amended charge.
When the charges were read to the defendants they all pleaded not guilty to the charges and the prosecutor urged the court to allow him call his witnesses.
But all the defendants counsels inlcuding O. Akoni (SAN) who represented the NAMA boss opposed the commencement of the trial immediately, adding that the bail applications should be heard first.
Justice Kiewumi while ruling on the bail applications granted all the accused person bail in the sum of N20million each with one sureties in like sum.
He added that the sureties must have landed property within the jurisdiction of the court which must be verify by the court register and prosecution.
The judge however said that the accused persons should be remanded in prisons pending when they will meet their bail condition.
The matter was adjourned till 27 and 28 of April.
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