Posted by By Wahab Abdulah & Maxwell Opara on
The trial of Emmanuel Nwude and Chief Nzeribe Okoli accused of defrauding a Brazilian bank to the tune of US 242 million dollars, was stalled yesterday owing to the absence of the lead defence counsel, Mr Olisa Agbakoba, SAN. Subsequently, the presiding judge, Justice Joseph Oyewole adjourned the matter till October 10, 2005 for further trial.
The trial of Emmanuel Nwude and Chief Nzeribe Okoli accused of defrauding a Brazilian bank to the tune of US 242 million dollars, was stalled yesterday owing to the absence of the lead defence counsel, Mr Olisa Agbakoba, SAN. Subsequently, the presiding judge, Justice Joseph Oyewole adjourned the matter till October 10, 2005 for further trial.
At the last hearing of the case, counsel to the prosecution, Mr Rotimi Jacobs and the defence, Olisa Agbakoba SAN, and Mr Adesina Ogunlana had a chambers meeting, suspected to be an attempt to settle the matter between the prosecution and the defence, to provide for a situation whereby the accused persons have to forfeit their attached properties in lieu of the continuation of the case.
However at the resumed hearing of the matter yesterday, there were unresolved arguments as to whether the court should hear the motion filed by Mr Agbakoba SAN, praying the court to order the prosecution to make available some documents tendered as exhibits or for the continuation of the initial meetings brokered in respect of the case. Though Agbakoba was absent, he was however represented by Mr. N. Quaker, from his chambers, who informed the court that the matter cannot continue due to the absence of the senior counsel. He said the expectation yesterday was to continue the negotiations earlier started rather than arguments of the motion filed by the defence on exhibits.
Responding, Mr Rotimi Jacobs, prosecution counsel, argued that Mr Quaker misrepresented fact, stating that he prepared for the argument of the motion filed by Agbakoba. But Quaker said unless his principal counsel is present in court, he cannot go on with the matter.
Quaker said 'My lord, there is an application pending before your lordship and so Iam in no position to receive any documents as regards to issues of the last adjourned date. Considering the volume of the documents I need time to go through the documents and beside this application has not been moved and you cannot pre-empt it."
Jacobs responded 'we want it to be on record that we served him the document and he refused it," adding that it was an attempt by the defence team to delay further proceedings in the case. According to him, the foreign witnesses had stayed so long in the country at the expense of the government.
He urged the court to turn down the application for any meeting but the continuation of the case. At this juncture, a counsel representing the second accused, Mr Adesina Ogunlana, interjected complaining about foreign journalists taking photographs of his client in the court room. He stated that it was not right for them to have done that, praying the court to make an order retrieving the film from the journalists.
However his prayer was turned down but the Judge cautioned that such thing should not be done again.
Also the prosecution counsel, Mr Jacobs apologised on behalf of the journalists.
The presiding Judge adjourned the matter till Monday, October 10,2005.