$1.69m fraud: Fred Ajudua's case transferred to new judge
Ajudua and one Charles Orie are being prosecuted for
allegedly defrauding two Dutch businessmen; Messrs Remy Cina and Pierre Vijgen,
of 1.69 million US dollars (about N252.8 million).
Their trial, which began in 2003, is to start afresh before
Justice Kudirat Jose following the withdrawal of the former trial judge,
Justice Joseph Oyewole, from the case.
Oyewole withdrew following a petition written to the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, by a former Chief of Army
Staff, retired Lt.-Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi.
Bamaiyi had alleged in the petition that Ajudua used the
names of the judge and others to defraud him of about $8.39 million (N1.3
billion).
However, the re-arraignment of the defendants before Jose
was stalled on Tuesday due to the absence of the EFCC counsel.
Ajudua and his counsel, were in
court for the proceedings, but the second defendant (Orie) was also absent.
The judge consequently adjourned the matter to February 5
for the re-arraignment and directed that hearing notices should be sent to Orie
and the EFCC.
The defendants were earlier arraigned before Oyewole over
the offence between July 1999 and September 2000.
The case, which had proceeded to trial, was stalled after
Ajudua, who was granted bail on medical grounds, absconded in 2005.
On June 11, 2013, Ajudua voluntarily appeared before the
court after almost eight years of absence and Oyewole remanded him in Kirikiri
Maximum Prison.
He was, however, granted a N50 million bail by a vacation
judge, Justice Ganiyu Safari, on grounds of ill-health.
Meanwhile, following the Bamaiyi allegation, the EFCC has
charged Ajudua before Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye, also of an Ikeja High Court.
The court has fixed February 12 for his arraignment on a
13-count charge of conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretences.
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