A Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday discharged Adeyemi Ikuforiji, the Speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly, who was tried for alleged money laundering.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ikuforiji was charged alongside his aide, Oyebode Atoyebi, on an amended 56-count charge bordering on money laundering.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had on Dec. 15, 2011 arraigned the duo before Justice John Tsoho.
They both pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In his ruling on a no-case submission by Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) and Mr Tunde Akirinmisi on behalf of the accused,
Justice Buba discharged the accused, describing the trial as a joke taken too far.
Buba held that it was difficult not to agree with the defence that the prosecution misconstrued the provisions of the Money Laundering Act by charging the accused under a repealed law.
He noted that it was the duty of the prosecution in a criminal case to establish all elements of the offence against an accused, adding that the prosecution failed to discharge this duty in the instant case.
“The submission of prosecution does not only fly against logic, but against the spirit and philosophy of the law and elementary jurisprudence.
“The prosecution with respect has misconstrued and misinterpreted the provisions of the money laundering law; a thing is laundered only when it is dirty with the goal of cleaning it.
“This court has no difficulty with the phrase transaction or going through financial institution which was clearly stated by Chief Olanipekun in his address.
“If the prosecution called two witnesses and both of them did not give evidence in support of the charge, the court is duty bound at the close of the prosecution’s case to decline to call on the accused to enter his defence.
“This court has no difficulty from the evidence of Pw1 and 2, and the document before the court in agreeing with Chief Olanipekun that this trial has been based on “trial and error” approach. It is a joke taken too far.
“At first, it was triggered off by a suspicion generated from the petition of one Eleya Olotu, who has been established to be faceless and wicked.
“As submitted by learned counsel for the defence, if at all the petitioner existed, he has disappeared into thin air, and suspicion cannot take the place of truth.
“The prosecution applied the brake appropriately by desisting from calling further witnesses after two since prosecution should not be translated into persecution.
“This court will not for instance hold that the accused had conspired in 2011 to commit an offence in force in 2004; there was no doubt that the prosecution was in difficulty on which offence to charge and which law.
“There is no duty on the accused to prove their innocence it is the duty of the prosecution to bring that evidence,’’ he said.
Buba:“It is a witness called by the prosecution who testified before the court that the cheques were issued to the bank in the name of the clerk of the Assembly, and all requisitions made, were approved by relevant authorities.
“Nigeria is federation practising federalism, each tier of government operates within the law, and one arm should not in the name of investigation try to mussel the other arm without any iota of truth.
“The courts are duty bound to protect the interest of justice, therefore, there should be no sentiments in the interpretation of the law.
“From whatever angle the matter is considered, including the fact that Pw2 had vouched the innocence of the accused, this proceeding should have been treated as an aborted trial and the charge withdrawn.
“Having not done the needful as expected, the court is at liberty as the law entitles, to uphold the no-case submission and discharge the accused.
“This court, therefore, agrees that this is the first case in annals of history of this country that an allegation is made against a speaker of the House of Assembly by a false petitioner.
“It is the considered opinion of this court that the prosecution has not made a prima facie case against the accused.
“The court upholds the no-case submission, and consequently, the first and second accused are hereby discharged. I so hold.’’
NAN also reports that the prosecution led by Chief Godwin Obla (SAN) had closed its case on June 20 after calling two witnesses — Mr Adebayo Adeniji, an Investigating Police Officer, and Mr Adewale Olatunji, a former Clerk/Permanent Secretary of the House of Assembly.
Both witnesses had given various degrees of testimonies as to investigations conducted on the accused and activities of the House respectively.
After the close of the prosecution’s case, Olanipekun had made an application for a no-case submission for Ikuforiji, arguing that the whole charge preferred against the accused amounted to mere witch hunting
The case was later transferred to Justice Okechukwu Okeke and the accused were re-arraigned on March 1, 2012.
Following the retirement of Okeke, the case was again transferred to Justice Buba and the accused re-arraigned on June 24, 2013.
They had, however, pleaded not guilty to all counts, while Buba granted them bail in the sum of N1 billion each with two surety each in the sum of N500 million.
In the charge, the accused were alleged to have committed the offences between April 2010 and July 2011.
They were alleged to have committed an illegal act of accepting cash payments of over N273 million from the House without going through a financial institution.
Ikuforiji was also accused of using his position to misappropriate about N500 million belonging to the legislature.
The offence, according to the EFFC, contravenes the provisions of Section 18 (a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011. (NAN)