NIGERIAN COURT QUASHES ALL ALLEGATIONS OF CORRUPTION, BRIBERY AND MONEY LAUNDERING AGAINST AITEO BOSS BENEDICT PETERS BY BRITISH AND NIGERIAN AGENCIES, SAYS ALLEGATIONS ARE PERSECUTION, TRUMPED-UP CHARGES AND BASELESS.
NIGERIA COURT DECLARES AFRICAN BILLIONAIRE BUSINESSMAN BENEDICT PETERS AS A MAN OF LEGITIMATE MEANS AND LIVELIHOOD WHOSE WEALTH CANNOT BE SEIZED BY EITHER BRITISH OR NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT
NIGERIA COURT INDICTS THREE BRITISH OFFICIALS JOHN BAVISTA, STACEY BONIFACE, HELEN HUGHES, BRITISH CRIME AGENCY NCA,CPS OVER WRONGFUL PERSECUTION AND INVESTIGATION OF AITEO BOSS AND BILLIONAIRE BUSINESSMAN BENEDICT PETERS
NIGERIAN COURT ISSUES PERPETUAL INJUNCTION RESTRAINING UK CPS, NCA, EFCC AND AGF FROM INTERFERRING WITH THE ASSETS, PROPERTIES, RIGHTS AND ALSO PERSON OF MR. BENEDICT PETERS BY WAY OF ARREST, RESTRICTION OF HIS MOVEMENT, CHARGE OR CRIMINAL INTERDICTION IN RESPECT OF THE PROPERTIES.
COURT ORDERS UK NATIONAL CRIME AGENCY,BRITISH INVESTIGATORS, CPS, EFCC, AGF ETC TO PAY THE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESSMAN AND PAN AFRICANIST BENEDICT PETERS 200M FOR WRONGFULL PERSECUTION, TRUMPED-UP ALLEGATIONS AND BASELESS ACCUSATIONS.
COURT DECLARES BENEDICT PETERS AND HIS COMPANIES ARE THE REAL OWNERS OF PROPERTY WRONGLY LISTED AS BELONGING TO DIEZIANI MADUEKE
NIGERIAN COURT SLAM ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE FEDERATION, EFCC AND CROWN PROSECUTION SERVICE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM FOR PLOTTING TO EXTRACT BY INTIMIDATION AND COERCION ASSTS AND PROPERTIES BELONGING TO BENEDICT PETERS AND HIS COMPANIES
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The Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Abuja has quashed all allegations of corruption, bribery and money laundering against made against AITEO boss and International Businessman Benedict Peters by British and Nigerian agencies, says allegations are persecution, trumped-up charges, baseless and a case of abuse of state power.
The court therefore declared that the African Billionaire businessman, Mr. Benedict Peters is a person of legitimate means and livelihood and that he as well as his companies are the true and lawful owners of some properties wrongfully listed as owned by former Minister of Petroleum, Dieziani Allison-Madueke and granted a perpetual injunction restraining the UK and Nigerian authorities from interfering with his assets, rights, properties and the person of Mr. Benedict Peters.
In a Suit marked SUIT NO. FCT/HC/CV/0536/17 filed by Mr. Benedict Peters and three of his companies Colinwood Limited, Rosewood Investments Limited and Walworth Properties Limited against the Attorney General of the Federation, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of the United Kingdom, Helen Hughes of the CPS, the National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom and its investigators Stacey Boniface and John Bavister, the Honourable Court held that the Defendants, by fraudulent design, suppressed and misrepresented facts in supposition that the Claimants’ properties namely: 270-17 Street, Unit #4204, Atlanta, Georgia, Flat 5 Parkview, 83-86 Prince Albert Road, St. John’s Wood, London, Flat 58 Harley House Marylebone, London, and Apartment 4, 5 Arlington Road, London, legitimately acquired belonged to Mrs. Dieziani Alison Madueke, former Minister of Petroleum in Nigeria, and/or were unlawfully acquired, a fact they knew or ought to know as untrue, incorrect, which act constitutes the tort of carousel fraud.
The Plaintiffs had in their amended statement of claim averred that the Defendants engaged in a scheme of conspiracies, carousel fraud, misrepresentation and suppression of material facts which occasioned hardship, grave damages, loss of earnings, loss of goodwill and subjected the Plaintiffs to public contempt, odium and opprobrium. The Plaintiffs further averred that the fraud committed by the Defendants consists in dishonest/fraudulent misrepresentation of the true ownership of the assets of the Plaintiffs.
In its judgment and while upholding the averment of the Plaintiffs, the Court found that the Defendants had conspired against the Plaintiffs.
The Judge in a slam judgment also held that the predominant purpose of the deceitful sham allegations by the Defendants that the above listed Assets/Properties belonged to persons other than the Claimants was directly intended (albeit to inflict economic loss on the plaintiff just as much as it was to unlawfully profit the Defendants and also that the unlawful means of conspiracy of the Defendants was to extract by intimidation, coercion the Assets, properties and monies to which the Claimants are legitimately entitled.
The judge further held that it was unlawful for the Defendants to have approached the Southwark Court even while the Suit before Nyako J. was pending.
In a landmark Judgment that have deepened the principle of carousel tort in Nigeria ,The judge declared that the British NCA, CPS and Nigeria Attorney General, EFCC by fraudulent design, suppressed and misrepresented facts in supposition that the Claimants’ properties namely: (1) 270-17 Street, Unit #4204, Atlanta, Georgia; (2) Flat 5 Parkview, 83-86 Prince Albert Road, St. John’s Wood, London; (3) Flat 58 Harley House Marylebone, London; and (4) Apartment 4, 5 Arlington Road, London, legitimately acquired, belonged to Mrs. Deziani Alison Madueke, former Minister of Petroleum in Nigeria, and/or were unlawfully acquired, a fact they knew or ought to know as untrue, incorrect, which act constitutes the tort of carousel fraud.
The court also declared that the predominant purpose of the deceitful sham allegations by the Defendants that the Assets/Properties listed in relief 1 above belonged to persons other than the Claimants was directly intended (albeit to inflict economic loss on the Claimants just as much as it was to unlawfully profit the Defendants.
It is hereby further declared that the unlawful means of conspiracy of the Defendants was to extract by intimidation, coercion, the assets, properties and monies to which the Claimants are legitimately entitled.
The Defendants (NCA, CPS, EFCC, AGF) their operatives, officers, agents, servants in whatever manner and howsoever called, are hereby jointly or severally restrained from interfering with the proprietary rights and/or interests of the Claimants, their agents, alter-ego or privies in relation to the properties listed in this suit.
The Defendants either by themselves jointly/severally, their operatives, officers, investigators, servants, agents, associates and howsoever called, are hereby restrained from interfering/continued interference with the person of the 1st Claimant, either by way of arrest, criminal indictment, charge, interdiction, extradition, or in any other manner infringing on his personal liberty and freedom of movement on the facts and circumstances of this case, especially in the face of subsisting judgments of various Courts on the issues.
The sum of N200,000,000.00 (Two Hundred Million Naira) only is hereby awarded as general damages, jointly in favour of the Claimants against the Defendants, jointly and severally, for the unlawful interference, economic loss, loss of corporate goodwill from creditors, expropriation of personal Assets and proprietary rights of the Claimants.
The Court also held that the EFCC’s star evidence was unreliable and could not be used in support of their case as it was tendered by a person not being the maker and thereafter awarded general damages of Two Hundred Million Naira jointly and severally against the Defendants stating in reprimand that the action of the Defendants was a case of abuse of state powers.
Counsel to the Plaintiffs Onyedika Offor while reacting to the judgment said it has been a long five years for the Plaintiffs to clear their names and that this judgment was a victory for the rule of law and a heavy blow on abuse of office, arbitrary use of power and fraud. He thanked the judge for an erudite judgment and called on the Defendants to obey the judgment without hesitation.
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