Guardian Marketers want judge to hand off N1.3b fuel subsidy trial THURSDAY, 03 OCTOBER 2013 00:00 BY BERTRAM NWANNEKANMA NEWS- NATIONAL TWO oil marketers, Aro Bamidele and Abiodun Bankole, who are facing trial over alleged forgery in N1.3 billion fuel subsidy payment, yesterday asked the trial judge, Justice Lafeetat to hand off the trial. The marketers, who are being prosecuted alongside their company, A.B.S. Investment Company Ltd before an Ikeja High Court for the alleged crime premised their request on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) withdrawal of two defendants known to the judge from the charge sheet. The two defendants mentioned in the proof of evidence and listed in an amended charge before the new charge who were withdrawn by the EFCC are Linetrale Petroleum Limited and Mustapha Fasinro. The withdrawal of the amended charge followed the judge’s decision on July 8, 2013 not to continue with the trial because of her relationship with the two defendants. Sequel to this development, the prosecution led by Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), asked for adjournment for consultation which later led to the dropping of the amended charge. But counsel for the marketers, Chief Tony Idigbe (SAN) had latched on the situation to ask that the matter be struck out since there was nothing before the court again as a result of the withdrawal of the charge. However, Justice Okunnu ruled that the anti graft agency has the right to amend the charges. She also held that since she had not yet accepted the new charge, the old charge subsists and subsequently ordered that the disrupted trial continues. But at the resumption of the trial yesterday, the prosecution informed the court of another amended charge sheet, which had Nimex Petroleum Limited as a new defendant However, the EFCC was not able to produce the defendant, prompting the judge to adjourn till tomorrow for possible re assignment and re-arraignment. It was at this point that Idigbe made the intention of the marketers on the need for the judge to divorce herself from the trial. The defendants were arraigned by the EFCC on October 5, 2012 before Justice Lateefat Okunnu on an 18-count charge bordering on conspiracy, obtaining money by false pretence and forgery. Lawal Ahmed, a detective with the EFCC had also while testifying at the trial told the court that the defendants forged documents to claim N1.2 billion for oil subsidy without discharging 15,000 metric tonnes as claimed.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Oct 2013 08:14:48 +0000
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