- The matter was initially fixed for the commencement of full-blown hearing
- However, a Registrar of the court announced the new date to lawyers that appeared for both the prosecution and the defendants
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Tuesday, deferred trial of a former Minister of Aviation, Senator Stella Oduah, who is facing a 25-count corruption charge, till November 14.
Though the matter was initially fixed for the commencement of full-blown hearing, however, a Registrar of the court announced the new date to lawyers that appeared for both the prosecution and the defendants.
Oduah, who served as Aviation Minister from 2011 to 2014, is facing trial over an allegation that she laundered public funds to the tune of about 7.9billion, in connivance with eight others.
Other defendants in the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/316/20, are; China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), Gloria Odita, Nwosu Emmanuel Nnamdi, Chukwuma Irene Chinyere, Global Offshore and Marine Ltd, Tip Top Global Resources Ltd, Crystal Television Ltd and Sobora International Ltd.
The defendants had on July 21, pleaded not guilty to the charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, preferred against them.
Following their plea of innocence, trial Justice Inyang Ekwo allowed them to go home on the terms of the administrative bail they earlier secured from the EFCC.
However, the court directed the anti-graft agency to transfer the case file to the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation to ensure diligent prosecution of the defendants.
It will be recalled though the charge was filed since 2020, the EFCC was unable to arraign the defendants owing to a petition they wrote to the immediate past AGF, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN.
Malami, who persuaded the court to put the trial on hold to enable him to review the case file, subsequently gave the EFCC the nod to go ahead with the trial of the defendants.
The EFCC had among other things, alleged that Oduah, who also represented Anambra North in the Senate and Odita, who was identified as her aid and the Company Secretary to Sea Petroleum & Gas Company Ltd (SPGC), had in February 2014, used their positions to transfer the sum of N1,629,250,000.00 from I-Sec Security Nig. Ltd account No. 2021756955 with First Bank Plc, to Global Offshore and Marine Ltd account No. 2022977296 also domiciled with First Bank Plc, which money they reasonably ought to have known that it formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act.
The defendants were accused of opening a naira “anonymous Private Banking Nominee Account No. 2024414450 with First Bank Plc and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 11(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (As Amended) and punishable under Section 11(4) (a) of the same Act.”
They were equally accused of opening a United State dollar “anonymous Private Banking Nominee account No. 2024414498 with First Bank Plc and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 11(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (As Amended) and punishable under Section 1 1(4) (a) of the same Act.”