Former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello has petitioned the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court to indefinitely adjourn proceedings in the ongoing case brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In a letter dated July 12 addressed to Justice Emeka Nwite, Mr. Bello’s counsel, Musa Yakubu, requested the court to also lift the arrest warrant issued against him pending the outcome of an appeal filed at the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
The appeal, filed under case number CA/ABJ/CR/535/2024, seeks to overturn the arrest warrant issued against Mr. Bello on April 17, 2024.
Additionally, Mr. Bello seeks to nullify the service of the EFCC charges against him through substituted means and requests the reassignment of the case to a different judge.
The letter to Justice Nwite cited legal precedents and rules, including Order 4 Rule 11(1) of the Court of Appeal Rules, 2021, and the Supreme Court case of Vab Petroleum INC V. Momah (Supra), to support the request for indefinite adjournment.
Bello’s legal team also referred to a similar criminal appeal case where proceedings were stayed pending an appeal challenging jurisdiction.
In response to the EFCC’s application to vary the arrest warrant and enforce it through security agencies, Bello’s counsel urged the court to reject the request until the appeal process is concluded.
A copy of the letter was also forwarded to the National Judicial Council in response to a letter to Justice Nwite by the EFCC, dated July 8, 2024 and filed on July 10, 2024.
The case against Bello, numbered FHC/ABJ/CR/98/2024, alleges money laundering involving N80 billion. The next scheduled arraignment date was set for Wednesday, July 17, but is now subject to the court’s decision on Mr. Bello’s requests.
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The EFCC, in a letter dated July 8 and filed on July 10, had requested the court to enforce the arrest warrant and proceed with the case, prompting Mr. Bello’s latest legal maneuver to halt further proceedings pending the appeal’s outcome.
Moreover, Bello’s counsel made reference to the position of the law as contained in Order 4 Rule 11(1) of the Court of Appeal Rules, 2021 and the pronouncement of the Supreme Court in the case of Vab Petroleum INC V. Momah (Supra), and a litany of other cases.
The letter drew the attention of Justice Nwite to a similar case, also a criminal appeal, in which Justice Ismail Ijelu of the Lagos High Court stayed further proceedings in which the appellant had entered an appeal in appeal number CAIL/1159/2023 between Cletus Ibeto V. Federal Republic of Nigeria.
(NAN)
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