‘N167.8m fraud’: Court discharges lawyer, Oyo official

E. A. Ashade, judge of a Lagos state high court, sitting in Tafawa Balewa Square, has struck out a N167.* million theft charge preferred by the police against Badmus Adesina, an Oyo local government council official, and Ibukunoluwa Konu, a lawyer.

Ashade struck out the charge and discharged Adesina and Konu after a director of public prosecution’s (DPP) report stated they have no case to answer.

The police had claimed that the defendants stole N167.8 million from the estate of Godfrey Konu, who is now late.

The police alleged that they conspired to commit the offences of stealing, forgery and making of documents without authority between 2009 and 2019.

The defendants were accused of forging a letter of attestation of marriage certificate purportedly issued by the Ibadan south east local government council of Oyo and a letter titled: “Marriage Certificate” issued by a magistrates’ court in Ibadan.

The estate of Konu is being administered by the administrator general and public trustee of Lagos state and the alleged theft were payments made to Konu’s mother as a beneficiary to the estate in her capacity as the first and legal wife of the late Kwashie Konu.

In a legal advice of November 23, 2020, the DPP, A.O. Adeyemi stated that no prima facie case was established against the defendants.

She said no document was forged, adding that the issuance of the letter of attestation by Adesina was part of his duties.

Following the DPP’s advice, Ashade struck out the charges against the defendants.

Ruling on the defendants’ application, the judge held: “The prosecution has not opposed the application, he equally submitted that the power of the police to prosecute is subject to the Attorney-General of Lagos State.

“In view of there being no opposition to the application by the defendants to be discharged upon striking out of the charge against them by the prosecution and position of law in the matter, I therefore, order that the charge against the defendants is hereby struck out for non-prosecution and the defendants are hereby discharged.”