Court defers ruling on Sylva’s N19bn case

The case involving Timipre Sylva, former governor of Bayelsa state, who is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before AF Ademola of justice of the federal high court, Abuja, on a fresh 507-count charge bordering on stealing and money laundering, came up for hearing on Thursday.

Sylva is being charged alongside Francis Okokuro, Gbenga Balogun, and Samuel Ogbuku for allegedly using three companies – Marlin Maritime Limited, Eat Catering Services Limited, and Haloween-Blue Construction and Logistics Limited – to move over N19.2 billion from Bayelsa state coffers between 2009 and 2012.

On June 10, Justice A. R. Mohammed of the federal high court had dismissed the 42-count charge of stealing earlier brought against Sylva and his co-accused by the EFCC, with the excuse that the prosecution’s application to consolidate the charges before him, against the defendants, amounted to an abuse of court process.

The commission, however, faulted the ruling on the grounds that it was premature, as the accused persons had not even taken any plea before the court, and subsequently filed the fresh 50-count charge at the federal high court.

At the last adjourned date, June 25, the trial judge fixed July 9 for hearing on pending applications by the defendants challenging the competence of the charges and the jurisdiction of the court.

Counsel to Sylva, LO Fagbemi (SAN) had brought an application before the court, praying that the charges should be quashed; another application by Ochu Chukwuma, counsel to the third accused, also urged the court to dismiss the charges, arguing that they were based on same facts in the earlier-dismissed charges by Justice Mohammmed.

Ajayi Olowo, counsel to the fourth accused person, had also filed a preliminary objection, challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case.

Counsel to EFCC, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), argued that there was indeed a prima facie case against Sylva and his co-accused, adding that the court had jurisdiction to try the case since the offences committed took place in Abuja. Jacobs stressed that the applications of the counsel to the accused persons were “thoroughly misconceived”, adding that “charges dismissed by Justice Mohammed had not even been read to the accused persons, and they had not even taken their pleas, thus trial had not even commenced before the judge dismissed the charges”.

After listening to all the arguments, Justice Ademola deferred ruling on the applications for a later date. The new date, the judge said, would be communicated to both parties.