By Jude-Ken Ojinnaka
A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos on Monday discharged and acquitted former Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Patrick Akpobolokemi and a staff of NIMASA, Josphine Otuaga over alleged N8, 537, 586, 798. 58 billion fraud, preferred against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Justice Ayokunle Faji, discharged and acquitted the former NIMASA Director-General Akpobolokemi and Josphine Otuaga in his ruling on a no-case submission filed by Akpobolokemi and the fourth defendants, in the 22 counts charge against them.
In discharging and acquitting Akpobolokemi and Josphine Otuaga, a staff of NIMASA, Justice Faji held that the EFCC failed to establish a prima facie (sufficient evidence) case against them.
However, Justice Faji ruled that a former Commander of the Joint Task Force Operation Pulo Shield, Major-General Emmanuel Atewe (rtd), (second defendant) and a Staff of NIMASA, Kime Engonzu (third defendant), have case to answer in counts 12 to 22 of the charge and should therefore open their defence.
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Akpobolokemi had in a no-case submission filed by his lawyers Dr. Joseph Nwobike (SAN) leading Collins Ogbonna, prayed the court to uphold his no-case submission and acquit him without asking him to open a defence.
He stated that the prosecution, with all its witnesses and evidence tendered while making its case, failed to link him to the alleged crimes.
Akpobolokemi was arraigned before the court alongside Major-General Emmanuel Atewe (rtd), a former Commander of the Joint Task Force Operation Pulo Shield, and two other staff of the agency, Kime Engonzu and Josphine Otuaga.
They are being prosecuted for an amended 22- counts charge bordering on alleged conspiracy; fraudulent conversion; and stealing the sum of N8,537,586,798.58, property of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency.
One of the counts reads: “That you, Patrick Ziadeke Akpobolokemi, Major General Emmanuel Atewe, Kime Engozu, and Josphine Otuaga sometimes in 2014, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Court, with intent to defraud, conspired amongst yourselves to commit an offence to wit: Conversion of the sum of N8,537,586,798.58 property of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2012 and punishable under Section 15 (3) of the same Act.”
They had pleaded “not guilty” to the charges, thereby prompting the commencement of their trial.
Upon conclusion of the prosecution’s case, all the defendants opted for no-case-submission.
Delivering his ruling, Justice Faji held that none of the witnesses called by the Prosecution led any shred of evidence linking the first defendant, Patrick Ziadeke Akpobolokemi and fourth defendant to the offences they were charged for.
The court held that having regard to the totality of evidence led by the prosecution failed to provide any credible evidence linking the 1st defendant with the commission of the crimes alleged against him in Counts 1-11 of the first amended Charge and/or established a prima facie case against him warranting him to enter upon his defence.
The court also noted that out of the eleven witnesses fielded by the Complainant, only one witness, (PW 2), gave evidence where the name of the first defendant (Akpobolokemi) featured, while other witnesses made it abundantly clear that, they did not know the 1st Defendant and did not have any dealings with him.
“If there is no sufficient evidence linking the accused with the statutory elements and ingredients, a court of trial must as a matter of law discharge him. It has no business searching for evidence that is nowhere and therefore cannot be found.”
“The first and fourth defendants have no case to answer and are hereby discharged and acquitted” the court ruled.