TheCable

A federal high court in Abuja has fixed July 18 for ruling in a money laundering suit filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and seven others.

Other defendants in the criminal charge include A Group Construction Company Limited, Rocky Top Resources Limited, Megatech Engineering Limited and Novel Properties and Development Company Limited listed as second to fifth defendants respectively.

The sixth to eighth defendants are Imperial Union Limited, Carlin International Nigeria Limited and Aliyu Abubakar, a businessman.

Inyang Ekwo, the presiding judge, fixed the date on Thursday after Offem Uket, EFCC counsel, and Wole Olanipekun, lawyer to Abubakar, adopted their written addresses in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CR/268/16.

On July 20, 2022, the second to eighth defendants had through their lawyers, objected to the admissibility of the seven extra-judicial statements made by Abubakar (8th defendant) between August 2015 and January 2020.

They objected to the admissibility of the documents sought to be tendered by the EFCC on the grounds that they violate the provisions of the Evidence Act and Administration of Criminal Justice Act.

The judge then ordered a trial-within-trial to determine the voluntariness or otherwise of the seven statements made by Abubakar.

Ruling in the trial-within-trial would be delivered on July 18.

Also, a trial-within-trial hearing was done in another criminal charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/39/17 filed by EFCC against Abubakar and Mohammed Adoke, former attorney-general of the federation (AGF).

Abubakar had alleged that in the course of his investigation by the EFCC, he made extra-judicial statements under duress and was also induced to implicate others.

The court has fixed July 17 for ruling in the trial-within-trial.