The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Thursday filed fresh charges against James Nolan, a Briton, at the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The EFCC’s Counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, had, at the resumed trial, told Justice Okon Abang that the anti-graft agency had filed an additional proof of evidence dated November 20.
The lawyer said the EFCC brought up a fresh 32-count charge against the defendants in the case contrary to the initial 16-count charge bordering on money laundering.
News Agency of Nigeria reports that EFCC had, on October 21, arraigned Nolan and Adam Quinn (at large), both British nationals, over their alleged complicity in the 9.6 billion dollars judgment against Nigeria.
Process and Industrial Development (P&ID), an Irish engineering company, had secured the award against Nigeria following the non-execution of a 20-year gas and supply processing agreement the company had with the federal government.
The arraignment of the two British nationals is coming weeks after two P&ID directors were convicted over the deal.
The defendant are both directors of Goidel Resources Limited, a Designated Non-Financial Institution and ICIL Limited.
Paul Erokoro, SAN, counsel to Nolan, though acknowledged that the new count-charge was served on him, said he was served with not only the amended charge alone but an amended proof of evidence.
However, the EFCC lawyer Iheanacho, corrected that what was served was not an amended charge but an additional proof of evidence.
He urged the court to grant his prayer for the amended charges to be read to the defendant for his plea to be taken.
Erokoro did not raise any objection to Iheanacho’s prayer.
Nolan, however, pleaded not guilty to the 32-count charge.
Justice Abang, therefore, ordered Iheanacho to call his first prosecution witness for continuation of the trial.
NAN recalls that the EFCC’s lawyer had, on Wednesday, called his first prosecution witness, Agunbiade Adewale Akinseye, an account officer with the Guarantee Trust Bank.
Erokoro at the Wednesday’s hearing demanded for the original of the witness’ statement to aid the cross-examination, but the EFCC’s lawyer, though said he was not with it in the court, he promised to make it available after the sitting.
The defendant counsel, at Thursday’s proceeding, told the court that the anti-graft lawyer had made the statement available to him.
However, the EFCC kicked against the admission of the witness’ statement in the trial of Nolan.
Akinseye had made the statement in writing to EFCC in which he chronicled how about eight accounts linked to the controversial oil and gas supply contract was opened in 2006 and operated till date before the sponsors of the company were arrested in connection with the failed oil and gas deal.
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