Court strikes out fraud charges against ex-Gov Sylva, EFCC kicks

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Monday struck out the six-count criminal charges filed against former Governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The charges were filed by the anti-graft agency early this year following the re-arraignment of Sylva for the offences for which he was initially arraigned in 2012.
The striking out of the case was sequel to the decision of the Federal Government to withdraw the six counts charge bordering on fraud and money laundering proffered against the former governor.
Sylva, who co-chaired President Muhammadu Buhari’s inauguration committee, it would be recalled, had been on trial before Justice Evoh Chukwu of the Federal High Court for allegedly laundering over N2.45 billion Bayelsa State fund while in office.
However, Justice Chukwu struck out the suit No. FHC/ABJ/CR/23/2012 on Monday following the withdrawal of the charges by Jude Nnadi (SAN), who appeared on behalf of the former Attorney General of Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), by a fiat even though the charges were being prosecuted by the EFCC.
When the matter came up for trial on Monday at the court, Nnadi announced appearance and informed the court that he was ready for the trial, adding however that he had contrary directive from the Director of Public Prosecution to withdraw the charges.
According to him: “I received instruction from J. A. Ojogbana, an Assistant Director with EFCC, who is here in court, that these charges against the defendant be withdrawn.”
Ojogbana however told the court he was a bit surprised by the submissions of Nnadi because the instruction he had was to appear with the DPP who will announce the withdrawal on behalf of the AGF.
He faulted the claim that EFCC asked him to withdraw the charges.
His words: “In my presence this morning, Nnadi called the DPP, Mohammed Diri, and I spoke with him. He said the charge is to be withdrawn by the office of the AGF for the reason that it is similar with another charge against the accused person before Justice Ahmed Mohammed that has progressed than this case.”
The Defence counsel, Israel Olorundare (SAN), did not however oppose the application.
Olorundare thereafter urged the court to dismiss the suit, release Sylva’s passport and bar the EFCC from re-arresting him.
In his terse ruling, Justice Chukwu struck out the suit and ordered the release of the accused person’s passport.
Sylva was dragged before the court a month after he was sacked as governor of Bayelsa State by the Supreme Court in 2012.
The charge, with No. FHC/ABJ/CR/23/2012, was filed at the Federal High Court by Festus Keyamo, who has been prosecuting other Bayelsa State top officials for the same offence on behalf of the EFCC.
Keyamo later withdrew from the case and the accused person was re-arraigned..
The charges against Sylva read:
*That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, sometime between October, 2009 and February, 2010, at various places in Nigeria, including Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court did conspire to commit a crime to wit: conversion of properties and resources amounting to N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira) belonging to Bayelsa State Government and derived from an illegal act, with the aim of concealing the illicit origin of the said amount and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 17(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act), 2004 and punishable under Section 14(1) of the same Act.
*That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, on or about the 22nd of January, 2010, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, converted the sum of N380,000,000.00 (Three Hundred and Eighty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one Habibu Sani Maigidia, a Bureau De Change Operator with Account No. 221433478108, in Fin Bank, Plc, which sum you knew represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act.
*That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, on or about the 5th of February, 2010, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, converted the sum of N50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one Enson Benmer Limited with Account No. 6152030001946, in First Bank, Plc, which sum you knew represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act.
*That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, on or about the 5th of February, 2010, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, converted the sum of N20,000,000.00 (Twenty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one John Daukoru with Account No. 04800250000418, in United Bank for Africa, Plc, which sum you knew represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act.
*That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, sometime between October, 2009 and February, 2010, at various places in Nigeria, including Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court did conspire to commit a crime to wit: inducing Union Bank, Plc, with the intent to defraud, to deliver to Bayelsa State Government the sum of N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira), under the false pretence of using the amount to augment salaries of the Bayelsa State Government and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8(a) and punishable under section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2004.
*That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, sometime between October, 2009 and February, 2010, at various places in Nigeria, including Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court induced Union Bank, Plc, with the intent to defraud, to grant an overdraft facility of the sum of N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira) to the Bayelsa State Government under the false pretence of using the amount to augment salaries of the Bayelsa State Government and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1)(b) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2004 and punishable under section 1(3) of the same Act.