Ex-governor Sule Lamido and sons back in court

Tuesday, September 22, 2015 9:07 pm

Ex-governor Sule Lamido and his two sons in court today

Former Governor of the northwestern state of Jigawa, Alhaji Sule Lamido was dragged to the court again today.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, re- arraigned him, his two sons – Aminu Sule Lamido and Mustapha Sule Lamido, Aminu Wada Abubakar and Batholomew Darlington Agoha, before Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on a 27-count amended charge bordering on corruption and money laundering.

The other companies arraigned along with them were Bamaina Holdings Limited, Bamaina Company Nigeria Limited, Bamaina Aluminium Limited and Speeds International Limited, alleged to have been used as conduits for the crime.

Lamido and his co-accused were initially arraigned before Justice Evelyn Anyadike of the Federal High Court, Kano State, on July 9 2015 for allegedly misappropriating funds belonging to Jigawa State.

Their case was later transferred to the Federal High Court, Abuja, where Justice Gabriel Kolawole, a vacation judge, granted the accused persons bail, and adjourned the matter to September 22, 2015.

At the resumed hearing today, presided over by Justice Ademola, counsel to the EFCC, Chile Okoroma, presented the court with the amended charge, dated September 15, 2015, which added Agoha, manager of Speeds International Limited, as one of the accused persons.

The hearing which commenced at about 9.11am was, however, adjourned briefly to allow the registry to assign a new charge number to the amended charge sheet, since the case was originally heard in Kano.

On resumption, the charge was read to the accused persons.

One of the counts read: “That you Alhaji Sule Lamido (while being Governor of Jigawa State, Nigeria), Aminu Sule Lamido, Mustapha Sule Lamido, Bamaina Holdings Limited, Bamaina Company Nigeria Limited, and Speeds International Limited between 15^th October and 18^th December, 2008 within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did convert an aggregate sum of N124,649,915 paid by Dantata and Sawoe Construction Company Nigeria Limited into the account of Speeds International Limited.”

Another count read: “That you Alhaji Sule Lamido (while being the governor of Jigawa State, Nigeria), Aminu Sule Lamido, Mustapha Sule Lamido, Bamaina Holdings Limited, Bamaina Company Nigeria Limited and Speeds International Limited between 8^th January and 10^th December, 2013 within the jurisdiction of this Honbourable Court took possession of an aggregate sum of N101,580,300 paid by Dantata and Sawoe Construction Company Nigeria Limited into the account of Bamaina Holdings Limited.”

They all pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Justice Adeniyi Ademola, thereafter, adjourned till October 21 and 22 for trial.