Malabu oil deal: Court fixes Dec 12 to rule on statements implicating ex-AGF, Adoke

By Adeleye Kunle

Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday fixed December 12 to deliver a ruling on the admissibility of six different statements which implicated a former Attorney General of the Federation AGF, Mohammed Bello Adoke, in the alleged $1.1 billion Malabu Oil fraud.

The judge fixed the date after taking arguments from Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN, who stood for Adoke in the trial, and Mr Ofem Uket, who argued the case of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The six statements in dispute were made on different days by an oil magnate, Aliyu Abubakar, who is standing trial alongside Adoke in the alleged multi-billion dollar oil fraud.

Olanipekun, while adopting his final address in the trial-within-trial on the admissibility of the statements, told the court that the disputed statements were made in gross violation of Section 17 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015.

While canvassing that the statements be thrown out for being worthless, Olanipekun argued that the EFCC coerced the maker of the statements to implicate his client in the alleged multi-billion dollar oil fraud at all costs.

Among others, the senior lawyer said that the blunder of the EFCC during investigations into the alleged fraud was monumental and had no precedent in law.

Olanipekun argued that the operative of EFCC, Mr. Bala Sanga, who was deeply involved in the investigation of the maker of the statement and who was involved in the recording of the statements, ended up as the prosecutor of the same person he interrogated.

The maker of the disputed statements and oil magnate, Abubakar Aliyu had in the course of his trial along with Adoke, alleged that five EFCC operatives who subjected him to interrogation caused him to make the implicating statements under duress.

He alleged that he was asked to implicate former President Goodluck Jonathan and Adoke so as to be set free from being prosecuted