The Federal High Court in Abuja has allowed an accused nephew of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello to travel to the United Kingdom for medical treatment.
To enable the accused, Ali Bello, to undertake the medical trip abroad, the court ordered the release of his passport which was confiscated as part of his bail conditions.
Obiora Egwuatu, the trial judge, issued the order on Monday, overturning the objection of the prosecuting agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to granting the defendant's application.
He said the prosecution failed to present compelling evidence to support its claim that Ali would breach bail or tamper with evidence if allowed to embark on the medical trip.
He said he had no reason to believe Ali would breach bail, having honoured previous commitments to return to Nigeria to continue his trial on two separate occasions.
“Since he was granted bail, he has not breached the conditions of his bail and has been attending court for trial.
“It is not disputed that this court had granted the applicant similar requests on two previous occasions.
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“On these two occasions, i.e. between 1 and 31 August 2023 and between 17 December 2023 and 10 January 2024, the applicant did not breach the terms of the permit granted,” the judge said.
Stressing the need to ensure the defendant is sane to stand trial, the judge said: “I fully agree with the view that the defendant should be alive to stand trial” and face the consequences of his crime if convicted.
Mr Egwuatu ordered the deputy chief registrar of the court, who is guarding Ali's passport, to hand it over to him, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
He also ordered the defendant to return the passport by September 15.
Series of charges related to Kogi funds
Ali and three others are on trial on money laundering charges involving N3 billion allegedly siphoned off from Kogi State coffers during the tenure of former Governor Bello.
Yahaya Bello, former governor of Kogi State [PHOTO CREDIT: Alhaji Yahaya Bello]
The three co-accused in the case are Abba Adaudu, Yakubu Siyaka Adabenege and Iyadi Sadat.
The case is just one in a series of proceedings the EFCC has initiated against Ali, Mr Bello and their associates for their alleged fraudulent handling of Kogi State Government funds.
Ali and a co-accused, Dauda Sulaiman, are accused of money laundering in another case involving the alleged diversion of N10 billion of Kogi State funds. The case is before another judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, James Omotosho. The prosecution has already called seven witnesses to testify in the trial.
Former Governor Bello is facing money laundering charges relating to an alleged diversion of N80 billion from Kogi State in a separate case before Mr Omotosho. Both Ali and Mr Suleiman are named as accomplices in the case.
The EFCC charged Mr Bello after completing his two eight-year terms as governor in January, but has failed to bring him to court for prosecution.
Since April, Mr. Bello has avoided six court sessions scheduled for his arraignment, which has now been rescheduled for Sept. 25.
Ali's Medical Travel Request
On April 5, Ali filed an application in the trial before Mr Egwatu seeking an order to release his passport from the deputy chief registrar of the court to enable him to travel abroad for a medical consultation and examination.
He said the trip was for a routine cardiology follow-up to review his medication and undergo cardiac tests.
He said he received medical advice to undergo the process annually.
He also recalled that the judge had granted him similar permits to undertake the medical trip abroad on two occasions: the first between 1 and 31 August 2023 and the second between 17 December 2023 and 10 January 2024.
He said he returned to Nigeria on both occasions and returned his passport to the deputy chief registrar of the court as ordered.
He asked the judge to order his passport released again, agreeing to return it to the official upon his return from the UK to Nigeria.
The defendant also guaranteed that he would abide by the law in the United Kingdom.
EFCC opposes the request
The EFCC opposed the application.
In his defence before the court, EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, a SAN, cited a five-paragraph counter-affidavit detailing the reasons for the commission’s objection. An EFCC official, Abubakar Salihu Wara, swore to the facts contained in the document on April 19.
Mr Oyedepo argued that Ali failed to produce any medical report before the court to prove the state of his health that necessitated the medical appointment.
Mr Oyedepo said that Annexure “A” attached to the application did not reveal the email address of the sender and recipient of the said medical appointment.
He added that the applicant had not submitted anything to show that Annex “A” emanated from the London Centre for Advanced Cardiology as claimed.
He argued that Ali could alter evidence gathered for his prosecution if his request is granted.
However, Ali filed an additional affidavit to refute the prosecution's claims.
Decision
Apart from taking advantage of the reputation Ali had earned by keeping his promises to return to Nigeria when he was granted permits for foreign travel on two previous occasions, the judge also ruled that the EFCC's reasons for opposing the application were unconvincing.
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Mr Egwatu maintained that the EFCC had failed to prove that the name of the London hospital Ali planned to visit and its address “do not exist”. He said there was no evidence to the contrary to question the fact that the applicant “has a scheduled appointment with the said cardiologist”.
According to him, the EFCC also failed to produce any evidence to show that while Ali was out on bail, he interfered or attempted to interfere with evidence or conspired with any person to tamper with evidence.
The judge added that the defendant must be in good health to withstand the rigors of the trial.
Former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele, who is facing multiple corruption trials, recently petitioned the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, to seek medical care in the United Kingdom, but the court rejected the request.
The judge in the case upheld the EFCC's objection, argued by Mr Oyedepo, the same prosecutor in Ali's trial.
(YAYA)