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A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Tuesday adjourned till Friday, November 25 to hear the preliminary objection of the former governor of Imo State, Senator Rochas Okorocha to the N3.1 billion fraud charges preferred against him by the Federal Government.
When the matter came up on Tuesday, Okorocha’s counsel, Ola Olanipekun (SAN) informed the court that the business of the day was to hear the first defendant’s (Okorocha) motion on notice seeking the quash of the 17-count charge slammed against him.
In his reaction, the prosecution counsel, Farouk Abdallah said the prosecution had filed a counter affidavit to the first defendant’s motion on notice and that he was served with a rephimin court on Tuesday morning.
Olanipekun said the prosecution’s counter affidavit was served on him late Friday and that, explained the service of the first defendant’s reply on the prosecution on Tuesday morning.
In view of this development, the trial judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo adjourned the matter till Friday to take the preliminary objections to Okorocha’s motion on notice seeking the quashing of the charges filed against him.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is prosecuting the former governor and six others on a 17-count charge, bordering on conspiracy, stealing, conversion of public funds and money laundering to the tune of N3,147, 000, 000.
The former governor, who is the current Senator, representing Imo West Senatorial District in the National Assembly is currently enjoying a N500 million bail and a surety in likes sum. The surety, who must be a responsible citizen of the country, resident in Abuja, must have property worth the bail amount within the jurisdiction of the court.
According to Justice Ekwo, Okorocha must not travel out of the country without the permission of the court, must deposit his International Passport with the court and must make himself available in the court to face his trial and the second defendant, Nyerere Anyim (a.k.a Anyim Chinenye) should continue to enjoy the administrative bail earlier granted him by the EFCC for exhibiting good conduct while on bail.
The former governor was docked alongside Anyim Nyerere, Naphtali International Ltd, Perfect Finish Multi Projects Ltd, Consolid Projects Consulting Ltd, Pramif International Ltd and Legend World Concepts Ltd.
One of the counts reads, “That you, Rochas Okorocha, Anyim Nyerere and Naphtali International Ltd, on or about the 24th October 2014, at Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court converted the sum of N900,000,000 property of Imo State Government of Nigeria transferred from the Imo State Government House Account, which you all reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, to wit: stealing and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 15(2)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011, (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the Same Act.
Another count reads: That You, Rochas Okorocha, Anyim Nyerere and Perfect Finish Multi Projects Ltd, on or about 28th August 2014, at Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court converted the sum of N486,000,000 property of Imo State Government of Nigeria, transferred from the Imo State Joint State Local government Project Account, which you all reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, to wit: stealing and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 15(2)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act”.
The defendants pleaded “not guilty” to all the charges when they were read to them.
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