Justice Daniel Osiagor of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, Nigeria has ordered former Aviation Minister Mr Femi Fani-kayode to pay a sum of Two Hundred Thousand Naira (N200,000.00) only for failure to appear before the court and take his plea.
The defendant is being accused of involvement in fraud to the tune of Four Billion, Six Hundred Million (N4.6b) only.
Specifically, the former aviation minister is being prosecuted alongside a former minister of finance, Nenadi Esther Usman, a former chairman of ALGON, Danjuma Yusuf, and a limited liability company, Jointrust Dimensions Nigeria Limited, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
It would be recalled that the prosecution of Fani-Kayode and others had begun in 2016 before Justice Sule Muslim Hassan, who has been elevated to the Court of Appeal.
Midway to their trial before Justice Hassan, the defendants’ case file was transferred to Justice Rilwan Aikawa, on the grounds that Justice Hassan, was formerly a legal officer with the prosecuting agency, EFCC.
While the matter was pending before Justice Aikawa, the defendants’ plea was retaken
During the pendency of the trial, Justice Aikawa was transferred to another jurisdiction of the court, hence their case file was transferred to the new Judge, Justice Osiagor, for the matter to commence de novo (afresh).
When the matter came up today Wednesday 13th, October, the prosecutor, Bilikisu Buhari, informed the court that the matter is to start afresh, but that Femi Fani-Kayode, who is the second defendant was not in court to take his plea. This development prompted the prosecutor to pray the judge to revoke Fani-Kayode’s bail.
But Fani-Kayode’s counsel, F. B. Ajudua, pleaded with the court not to revoke his bail, saying that a letter has been written on behalf of his client, that he is currently on ‘bed rest’, at Kubwa General Hospital, Abuja.
Ajudua further informed the trial court that Fani-Kayode, has been readily attending his trial since the matter commenced in 2016 and that today is the only day that he was not in court.
Ajudua, while pleading for Fani-Kayode’s absence, pleaded with the court not to revoke his bail, and also asked for a short adjournment.
But the trial judge, upon perusing the record of the court discovered that Fani-Kayode had absented himself from the court on five occasions, a development which the judge said had stalled the smooth hearing of the charge.
Justice Osiagor, therefore gave two options of either to revoke his bail or a fine of Two Hundred Thousand Naira (N200, 000, 00) only and his counsel opted for a fine option.
Following the fine option elected by his counsel, Justice Osiagor, slammed a fine of Two Hundred Thousand Naira (N200, 000, 00) only against Fani-Kayode, which he ordered must be paid before the next adjourned date.
The case was then adjourned till 30th November 2021, for re-arraignment.
The EFCC had in its charge designated FHC/L/C/251c/2016, alleged that the accused persons, Usman, a former Minister of Finance, under President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, Femi Fani-Kayode, who is also the Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organization boss, Danjuma Yusuf and a limited liability company, Jointrust Dimensions Nigeria Limited, had on or before January 2015, unlawfully retained the total sum of Four Billion, Six Hundred Million naira (N4. 6b) only, which they knew to have been the proceeds of an unlawful act.
While the former State Minister for Finance, Danjuma Yusuf and Jointrust Dimensions Nigeria Limited retained the sum of One Billion, Five Hundred Million Naira (N1.5 billion) only, Femi Fani-Kayode and Olubode Oke (said to be at large), were alleged to have retained the total sum of One Billion, Six Hundred and Fifty Million, Six Hundred and Fifty Naira ( N1,650,650).
The accused persons were also alleged to have made payment of several amounts running to billions of Naira without going through financial institutions.
The offences, according to the anti-graft agency, are contrary to Section 1(a), sections 15(2)(d), 16(d), 18(a), 16(d) 18(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012 and punishable under sections 15(3), 16(2)(b) and 4 of the same Act.
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