Moves by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest of a former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode suffered a major blow on Wednesday as the Federal High Court in Abuja rejected the agency’s application in that regard.
EFCC’s prosecuting counsel, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, had urged the court to issue an arrest warrant against the ex-minister following his absence from Wednesday’s proceedings of his trial involving alleged diversion of N26m he received from the then National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, in 2014.
The application was opposed by Fani-Kayode’s lawyer, Mr Wale Balogun, who tendered a medical report dated November 24, 2020 advising the former minister to observe some bed rest.
Justice John Tsoho, who is also the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court rejected the prosecution’s application for the issuance of an arrest warrant against the former minister on the grounds that the medical report presented by his lawyer showed that he had justifiable grounds to be absent from the trial on Wednesday.
The EFCC had, on November 11, 2016, arraigned Fani-Kayode on five counts including alleged diversion of N26m, which he allegedly received from the then NSA, Sambo Dasuki, to pay for an unspecified contract.
This Post: Diversion of N26m: Court rejects EFCC’s application to arrest Fani-Kayode was approved and published by Ancity Media Editor and may not be republished elsewhere without prior written permission from the Editor.
