$330,000 scam: Court warns Okoro against stalling trial
(Nigeria) Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye of the Lagos State High
Court sitting in Ikeja on Wednesday warned a Lagos hotelier, Augunos Okoro, standing
trial for duping a German businessman the sum of $330,000, against acts and
devices aimed at stalling his trial.
Okoro, whose trial ought to resume on Wednesday after
several years of adjournments and re-arraignments, slumped in court immediately
his application for adjournment of proceedings was dismissed by Justice Ipaye.
Okoro's counsel, Olalekan Ojo had earlier made two prayers, first was for his appearance in the
matter and the other for the court to grant him a short adjournment to enable
him study the case, since he was coming newly in the matter, but Justice Ipaye dismissed the application
and asked the prosecution to go on with the trial.
Prosecution counsel,
Adebisi Adeniyi, called his
witness: Rapheal Onwuzurigbo, a retired
Assistant Superintendent of Police attached to the Forensic Analysis Unit.
After the witness had finished his introduction and was
about to go into the matter, Okoro abruptly
slumped and thereby compelled the court to adjourn the matter to 24 and 25
February, 2016. While adjourning the matter, Justice Ipaye warned that this
kind of stunt will no longer be tolerated anymore in her court.
It will be recalled that Okoro, who is the proprietor of
Lagos York Hotels, was initially arraigned on May 30, 2003 before Justice
Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, and had pleaded not guilty to the charges. The case was
re-assigned to Justice Joseph Oyewole sometime in 2004.
His trial before
Justice Oyewole was stalled as a result of his alleged-ill health.
However, following the elevation of Oyewole to the Appeal
court, the matter was transferred to Justice Ipaye which necessitated the
defendant to be re-arraigned.
On Monday, the EFCC Counsel, Taiwo Ogunleye, asked the court
to order Okoro, who was assisted into the dock, due to his alleged failing
health, to re-take his plea.
Ogunleye said that Okoro conspired with the duo of Morris
Ibekwe (now deceased) and Chief E.A. Okoro (still at large), to commit the
offences between October and November, 1992.
According to her, Okoro obtained the money from the
complainant, one Klaus Munch and his firm, System Organisation of Germany.
The prosecutor said that Okoro claimed that the money was
for sundry payments to various government officials to facilitate the award of
a $30m contract to the company.
According to her, Okoro allegedly perpetrated the fraud by
forging the seal, stamps and other documents of various Federal Government
agencies.
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