VANGUARD, THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2016—29
Judiciary: Some events that shaped 2015 Continues from page 28 CS/895/15 against MTN Nigeria seeking N500M for copyright infringement of his musical works. December 18: EFCC rearraigned 5 for subsidy fraud EFCC, on December 18 rearraigned three persons: Ifeanyi Anosike, Emeka Chukwu and Ngozi Ekeoma and their companies, Anosyke Group of Companies Limited and Dell Energy Limited, before Justice Lateef Lawal Akapo of the Lagos State High Court sitting at Ikeja on an amended 35-count charge bordering on conspiracy to obtain by false pretence, attempt to obtain property by false pretence, conspiracy to forge documents, and forging document. The accused persons were said to have conspired among themselves to obtain the sum of N324,780,567.53 by false pretence from the Federal Government as subsidy payment for the importation of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS. December 21: Lagos Court’s Registrar jailed 10 years for defrauding former Chief of Army Staff of $330,000. Justice Lateef Lawal-Akapo of an Ikeja High Court on December 21 sentenced
a court registrar, Mrs Oluronke Rosolu, to 10 years imprisonment for defrauding a former Chief of Army Staff, retired Lt.-Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi of 330,000 dollars. Rosolu was convicted on all the two counts charge of conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretences brought against her by the EFCC. December 21: Edo Government removed its Customary Court of Appeal The Edo Government on December 22 repealed the act establishing the Customary Court of Appeal in the state.
Charge of conspiracy Governor Adams Oshiomhole, who signed the Amendment Bill into law said that the Customary Court of Appeal had ceased to exist in the state and the judges there were transferred to the State High Court thereby increasing the number of the State High Court judges from 24 to 30. December 29: Court awarded N7m damages against Police over violent disruption of rally An Abuja High Court sitting in Maitama, awarded N7 million damages against the Inspector General of Police, Commissioner
Supreme Court of Police FCT, Ministry of Police Affairs and the Police Service Commission, over the violent disruption of a peaceful rally in Abuja, November 21, 2013. The court order followed a suit marked CV/1624/2013, filed by a non-governmental organization, the Centre for Social Justice, Mr. Eze Onyekpere and five others.
In his judgement, Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf held that the violent disruption of the applicants’ meeting and peaceful assembly at the Millennium Park in Abuja on November 21, 2013 by armed officials of the respondents “was a wanton violation of the applicants’ fundamental rights guaranteed
by Section 40 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended.” The court said the respondents acted against the spirit and provisions of the constitution when it forcefully prevented the applicants from marching to the National Assembly to lodge their complaint.
Court strikes out fraud charges against Kads Farms CEO By Onozure Dania
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RS A. T. Omoyele, of an Ikeja Magistrate Court, has struck out a fraud charge filed against the Chief Executive Officer of Kads Farms Limited, a livestock company, Ken Ogiamien, for want of diligent prosecution. Ogiamien was arraigned on charges of obtaining money by false pretence following a complaint by a policeman, Agha Tobias. The complainant had claimed that he bought a plot of land at Isheri North residential scheme in 2006 through Ogiamien, who is also a real estate agent, adding that when he discovered that the land was waterlogged, he asked for a refund of his money but that Ogiamien refused to pay back the money. Ogiamien, during the trial had told the court that he was already
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repaying the money, stating that the land was affected by flood water, which was not the case when he sold the land. Recalling the transaction, he said: “At the point of the transaction, there was no water on the land. But the land was later flooded with water from Ogun River. “Because of the water, Tobias said he was no longer interested in the land. He asked for a refund. We took the matter to the then Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Frank Mba. “Mba said I should refund Tobias themoney.Basedontheagreement, I started refunding the N2million. I had paid him N1million in cash. It wascollectedonhisbehalfbyPPRO, and he was remitting the money to Tobias. “Maybe because he was a police officer, he took the matter to the State Police Command having received N1million of his money. The
command then decided to take the matter to court.” “He never appeared in court for one day. The whole thing was just to humiliate and embarrass me. I have all the evidence of the payments I made to him because PPRO always acknowledged the
money I brought. “The PPRO even told me he was ready to come and testify in court that I was already paying back the money. But Tobias never came to court,” Ogiamien said. The businessman further stated that he was making effort to raise
the balance of N1million, when the complainant instigated his arrest. Ogiamien had pleaded not guilty to the five-count charges bordering on fraud when he was arraigned. He said he was ready to prove his innocence.
Property: Court sentences 2 to 3yrs imprisonment By Bartholomew Madukwe
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LAGOS High Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced two men, Waheed Ishola and Ayodele Omoniyi, to three years and 18 months imprisonment, respectively, after they both pleaded guilty to demanding property in public at Oshodi Oke Bridge. The trial judge, Justice Atinuke Ipaye, after acknowledging the plea bargain entered by the duo,
said the period of their custody which commenced since 2014 shall be taken into consideration. According to the charge, Waheed Ishola, on December 28, 2012 about 8p.m., at Oshodi Oke Bridge Oshodi Lagos in the Ikeja Judicial Division was found whilst armed with offensive weapon demanding property in public with intent to steal. “Ayodele Omoniyi on December 28, 2012 about 8p.m., at Oshodi Oke Bridge Oshodi
Lagos in the Ikeja Judicial Division was found to be an accessory after the fact to misdemeanor.” The prosecutor, Mr Hafeez Owokoniran, informed the court that the offence of demanding property with intent to steal was contrary toguilty on 299 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2001. “The defence counsel, Mr Worker Obuagbaka, applied to the Attorney General, dated October 7, 2015 for plea bargain,”