Olasupo Shasore was standing trial filed by the EFCC in Abuja and Lagos on alleged money laundering offences.
By Jeffrey Agbo
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Thursday withdrew the money laundering charge preferred against a former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Lagos State, Olasupo Shasore (SAN).
This followed a directive by the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi.
Justice Inyang Ekwo of a Federal High Court in Abuja discharged the defendant after being informed of the AGF’s directive by the prosecutor Bala Sanga.
“Upon being shown a letter from the AGF dated 23rd of November and the application by the prosecution counsel that the matter be withdrawn, the charge is hereby withdrawn and the defendant discharged,” the judge said.
The letter personally signed by Fagbemi, which was addressed to the Executive Chairman of EFCC, was captioned: “RE: Review of All Civil and Criminal Proceedings Between Process and Industrial Developments Ltd (P&ID) and Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN).”
The cases were listed as charge number: FHC/L/447C/2022 – FRN Vs. Olasupo Shasore, SAN; charge number: FHC/ABJ/CR/386/2022 – FRN Vs. Middlesex Investments Ltd and charge number: ID/19657C/2022 – FRN Vs. Olasupo Shasore, SAN.
The letter with reference number: DPPA/OLASUPO/345/23 informed the EFCC “that the above charges were being reviewed in the light of recent developments in Process & Industrial Developments Limited vs. The Federal Republic of Nigeria (CL-2018-000182) and The Federal Republic of Nigeria vs. Process & Industrial Developments Limited (CL-2019-000752).
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“Consequently, you are hereby directed, pursuant to the provisions of Sections 105(1) & 108(1) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, to withdraw the said charges with immediate effect and revert on compliance promptly.”
Shasore was standing trial filed by the EFCC in Abuja and Lagos on alleged money laundering offences.
He was, on November 4, 2022, arraigned on a 14-count money laundering charge before Justice Ekwo of Abuja court.
In the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/386/22 filed on Aug. 17, 2022, Middlesex Investments Ltd and Shasore were 1st and 2nd defendants respectively.
Shasore was alleged to be a director and a signatory to the company’s Guaranty Trust Bank account number 0005659394.
Shasore, however, pleaded not guilty to the offences alleged to have been committed along with the company and was granted bail in terms of the administrative bail earlier granted him by the EFCC.
On October 20, 2022, Shasore was arraigned before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of an Ikeja Special Offences Court on a two-count charge bordering on alleged money laundering.
Hours later, he was arraigned before Justice Mojisola Dada of a Federal High Court in Lagos on a four-count charge of alleged money laundering.
On October 23, a Business and Property Court in London presided over by Justice Robin Knowles of the Commercial Courts of England and Wales quashed the $11 billion awarded against Nigeria in a case filed by P&ID.
Judge Knowles held that the award was obtained by fraud and that what happened in the case was contrary to public policy.
The court also declared that it did not find any merit in the charges of bribery levelled against Shasore who represented Nigeria in the arbitration.