The Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned the Managing Director, Almond
Properties Ltd., Olugbenga Obadina, in the Federal High Court, Abuja, on an
eight-count charge bordering on money laundering. The EFCC arraigned Obadina on
Friday for receiving over N2.4 billion from a former National Security
Adviser,
retired Col. Sambo Dasuki, for electricity contracts that were never executed.
The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to all eight counts. The prosecuting
counsel, Mr Peters Aso, urged the court to remand the defendant in prison custody
and order accelerated hearing of the case. Aso said that even though bail was
at the discretion of the court, the proof of evidence accompanying the charges
against Obadina, showed that he was not entitled to bail. “The defendant
received N2.4 billion out of which $2.6 million has been taken abroad and his
passport is still in his custody.
“And so, if granted bail, he is a flight risk
because he will jet off to enjoy that money already abroad,’’ Aso said. The
prosecutor said that although they had recovered N70 million from the
defendant, rather than cooperate, he was frustrating the investigation.
He
urged the court to discountenance the exhibits attached to the defendant’s bail
application, saying they were public documents and only certified true copies
would be accepted by the court. Defence counsel Chris Uche (SAN) notified the
court that the defendant had been in EFCC’s custody for over one month even
though he had been granted administrative bail.
Uche urged the court to grant
his client bail, saying that the charge preferred against him was one in which
bail could be granted. He also noted that the defendant had demonstrated,
through the exhibits he attached to his affidavit, that he would be available
to attend his trial if granted bail.
He appealed that bail should be granted in
liberal terms, adding that the N70 million recovered by the EFCC could be used
as bond. The judge, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, said that the court could put in
place measures that would ensure that the defendant was not a flight risk when
granted bail.
Dimgba also said that the court would put in place measures to
ensure that he appeared for his trial. Dimgba adjourned ruling on the bail
application till July 18 and ordered the remand of the defendant in Kuje
prison.
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