Leadership (Abuja)
Catherine Agbo
4 November 2009
Abuja — Attempts by the former governor of Plateau State, Joshua Dariye to retrieve his passport from the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), suffered a setback on Monday as Justice Abimbola Banjoko of the Abuja High Court , Gudu on Monday, turned down the request.
Dariye is standing trial for multiple count charge of stealing, misappropriation of state funds and criminal breach of trust involving several millions of naira.
The trial judge had on Tuesday June 3, 2008 rejected a request by the former governor to hands off his trial with immediate effect. The former Plateau helmsman has however filed an application at the Court of Appeal to upturn the lower court's decision, and returned to the court on Monday requesting for his travelling documents. EFCC counsel, Rotimi Jacobs however, told the court that he had already submitted a 20 paragraph affidavit on why the travelling documents should not be given to the former governor.
A statement by the EFCC, signed by it's head media and publicity, Femi Babafemi disclosed that the presiding Judge, Justice Banjoko, in her short ruling, insisted that since Dariye had gone on appeal, asking for interlocutory appeal on the issue of jurisdiction, she would have nothing to do with the release or otherwise of Dariye's travelling documents.
The judge, who insisted that she would go ahead with the hearing of the criminal charge preferred against the ex-governor, explained that mere filing of an interlocutory appeal by Dariye against her ruling on the issue of jurisdiction was not enough to stay proceedings in the case.
Justice Banjoko, who said that she would not allow the matter to drag, however, promised to hands off the case as soon as the Court of Appeal fixes hearing date on the interlocutory appeal filed by Dariye on jurisdiction.
Hearing in the case has been adjourned till December 2, 2009. In another development, the EFCC also on Monday, arraigned two internet fraudsters at the FCT High Court, Gudu, Abuja , before Justice Abubakar Talba.
The fraudsters, Chukwudi Obunike Umenyiloraha (alias Hector Williams) and Prince Kenechukwu Nweze (alias Morgan Patrick) were arraigned on a seven- count charge bordering on false pretence, fraud and document falsification.
The accused were arrested on September 14, 2009, at about 12 noon by operatives of the commission at Prince and Princess Estate in Abuja . The internet fraudsters popularly known as 'yahoo boys', met their waterloo when a concerned citizen alerted the commission of their activities.
The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges against them; a development which necessitated the prosecution counsel, Lanre Peters to ask for a short adjournment to be able to present his witness in court for accelerated hearing of the case.
But the defence counsel, C.P. Chukwudi, prayed the court to grant the accused bail , a request which the Judge turned down and directed that the accused be remanded in EFCC custody till the next adjourned date on December 2, 2009.
It would be recalled that Chukwudi Umehyiloroha, a 29-year-old drop out of St Mary's school in Enugu , who hails from Awka, in Anambra state was arrested by EFCC Operatives sometime in September this year at the lobby of a hotel in Abuja , after being trailed by the Commission electronically. He is a notorious internet fraudster who has used false identities to defraud a Thai woman, claiming be an American working in Nigeria .
Upon his arrest, Chukwudi, made useful confessions which led to the arrest of another member of the syndicate, Prince Kenny Nweze at the Prince and Princess Estate in Abuja. He was also accused of using a false identity to extort money from another Thai woman claiming to be a British.
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