Dasukigate: Absence of prosecutor stalls businessman’s trial

The trial of Olugbenga Obadina, a businessman, standing trial for allegedly collection of over N2.4 billion from the Office of the National Security Adviser under retired Col. Sambo Dasuk, was on Monday, stalled at the Federal High Court, Abuja, due to the absence of the prosecution counsel, Larry Aso.
When the matter was called on Monday, counsel to Obadina, Anayo Okafor, told the court that the prosecutor informed him that he had just returned from a training in Botswana and would be unable to attend court.
Okafor urged the court to adjourn the matter until March 2019 saying that his client was billed for a surgery in February 2019.
The trial judge, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, however, said that there was no need adjourning the matter in anticipation of a surgery.
Dimgba said: “Let us adjourn the matter normally and if on the next adjourned date he has not recovered from his surgery, we can take a new date.”
He adjourned the matter until January 17, 2019 for continuation of trial.
NAN reports that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, arraigned Obadina and his company, Almond Projects Limited on an eight-count charge of criminal breach of trust, corruption and money laundering to the tune of N2.4billion.
The EFCC alleged that Obadina collected the money, paid into his company’s account in tranches, between 2013 and 2015 from the Office of the National Security Adviser under retired Sambo Dasuki, in a scandal popularly known as #Dasukigate.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge.