By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
ABUJA– The Federal Government, on Friday, arraigned a prominent lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, over his alleged complicity in a web of fraud perpetrated in a bid to claim ownership of a disputed property in the United Kingdom.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to the allegation contained in a 12-count charge that was read to him before trial Justice Chizoba Orji of a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court at Maitama.
He was docked alongside Ponfa Useni, son of late General Jeremiah Useni (Rtd), a former Minister of the FCT who is at the center of the alleged property fraud.
The charge against the defendants borders on forgery and abetment of an offence.
FG alleged that sometime in 2020, the senior lawyer agreed with Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani) and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased) to commit an illegal act by making a false Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 with the name Tali Shani.
It was alleged that the defendants claimed the forged passport was issued by the Nigerian Immigration Service “with the intent of using the same to support your claim of a property, lying, being, and situate at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 96 of the Penal Code Law 2009 and punishable under section 364 of the same Law.”
According to the charge, the 1st defendant (Ozekhome) abetted the commission of an offence of cheating by personation when he jointly executed an irrevocable power of attorney dated May 30, 2020, with one Tali Shani, “a fictitious person,” to facilitate the claim of the UK property, and thereby committed an offence contrary to sections 83, 84, 321 of the Penal Code Law, 2009, and punishable under section 322 of the same Law.
While Count 9 of the charge alleged that he took control of the UK property, which is reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained by General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased) under the fictitious name Tali Shani, he was, in Count 10, alleged to have, within the period, collected the sum of £18,000.00 as rent that accrued from the property.
Useni, who was said to have falsely personated a fictitious person (Tali Shani), was cited as the 2nd defendant in the charge that was signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN.
Following the defendants’ plea of innocence to the allegations, the prosecution counsel, Oyedepo, SAN, applied for a trial date.
However, Ozekhome’s lawyer, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo, SAN, and counsel to his co-defendants, F. R. Onoja, pleaded for their release on bail, an application that was not opposed by the prosecution.
Consequently, Justice Orji granted the defendants bail in the sum of N10million each, with a surety each in the like sum.
The Court stressed that the sureties must be owners of landed property within the FCT, even as it ordered the defendants to surrender their international passports and not travel outside the country without permission.
Justice Orji noted that since the proceedings took place on a Friday, the defendants could go home if they were unable to perfect the bail conditions before the end of the day.
However, she ordered them to return to the court on Monday to fulfill the bail conditions, failing which they would be remanded in prison.
It will be recalled that the court earlier struck out a three-count charge the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) filed against Ozekhome in relation to alleged fraud in the disputed UK property.
Source; Vanguard News