N950m Fraud: Kano Court Adjourns Shekarau, Others’ Case to October 18

Ibrahim Shuaibu

A Federal High Court sitting in Kano, yesterday adjourned the N950 million fraud suit, involving the former Governor of Kano state, Ibrahim Shekarau, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Aminu Wali and a former Director General Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation, Mr. Mansur Ahmed till October 18, 2018.

In his submission, the prosecuting counsel, Mr. Johnson Ojogbane informed the court that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had already applied for the transfer of the matter, through the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, from Kano to another judicial division due to security threat.

Ojogbone sought the adjournment of the suit to enable them conclude the process of the transfer.

“I wish to inform the court that, after we left here on the last date, due to the difficult situation, we find ourselves same day at our Kano office, it is practically impossible for us to continue to prosecute this case in this judicial division. Consequently, we wrote a letter to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja on June 1, 2018, seeking for his gracious intervention, to transfer this case from this division to another division, which is safer to all concerned.

“We also further wrote an application, dated June 25, 2018, for the adjournment of this case to enable us complete the process of the transfer based on the provision of Section 98 sub-section (1)(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.2015, where it stated clearly that, the Chief Judge has the power to transfer a case from one court to another, we wish to apply that this case is adjourned to another day,” he explained.

The presiding Judge, Justice Zainab Abubakar interjected midway and insisted that the prosecution counsel cannot request for such application for an adjournment without specifically mentioning a date that will be convenient and acceptable to both parties.

On his part, counsel to the first defendant Jibrin S. Okutepa (SAN), who vehemently opposed the application on transfer of the case from Kano, insisted that the transfer was a sign that the prosecution was not prepared to continue with the suit.

Okutepa argued that the prosecution has no excuse to apply for such application on the basis of security threat.

According to him, all the security apparatus are in its disposal.