Court okays detention of Adoke for additional 14 days
Posted by News Express | 2 January 2020 | 961 times
•Detained Ex-AGF Adoke
Justice A.O.
Musa of Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, today, Thursday, January
2, 2020 granted the application of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC) to keep the former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister
of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke, in its custody for additional 14 days
preparatory to his arraignment.
In granting
the application, the judge stated that “the extension of the remand of the
respondent for another 14 days for the purpose of his arraignment in court is
necessary and granted as prayed.”
The
Commission took custody of Adoke on December 19, 2019, upon his arrival from
Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Adoke, who
fled the country in 2015, has pending criminal charge of alleged abuse of
office and money laundering in respect of the granting of the Oil Prospecting
License (OPL) 245 to Shell and ENI.
News Express reports that the government of former President Olusegun Obasanjo revoked the
OPL 245, which the late General Sani Abacha granted Dan Etete, his then
Petroleum Minister, and reassigned it to Shell Nigeria Exploration and
Production Company, SNEPCO.
Etete’s
Malabu Oil and Gas, however, reclaimed the oil block in 2006 through the court.
While Shell challenged the decision, a ‘fraudulent settlement and resolution’
was consummated under President Goodluck Jonathan’s government, with Shell and
ENI buying the oil block from Malabu in the sum of $1.1 billion.
Investigations
by EFCC into the deal revealed crimes that border on conspiracy, forgery of
bank documents, bribery, corruption and money laundering to the tune of over
$1.2 billion against Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, Shell Nigeria Ultra Deep
(SNUD), Nigeria Agip Exploration (NAE) and their officials, culminating in
criminal charges against Adoke, Etete and others, which are pending in both the
FCT High Court and the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The absence
of the defendants slowed the prosecution of the suspects, forcing the EFCC to
obtain an arrest warrant against them on April 17, 2019.
Adoke,
however, arrived the country on Thursday, December 19, 2019 from Dubai, United
Arab Emirates into the waiting arms of EFCC operatives at the Nnamdi Azikiwe
International Airport, Abuja.
"His return
has now cleared the way for him to answer to the charges against him," EFCC Spokesman Wilson Uwujaren said Thursday in a statement.
Justice Musa adjourned the case to enable its assignment by the Chief Judge.
Source: News Express
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