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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
A Federal High Court in Lagos has discharged and acquitted a former Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, of N338.8 million money laundering.
The court also discharged Oyebode Atoyebi, a personal assistant to Ikuforiji, who was arraigned alongside the former speaker.
The former speaker and his aide were arraigned on a 54-count charge bordering on money laundering by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
EFCC accused Ikuforiji and Atoyebi of allegedly accepting cash payments of N338.8 million from the assembly without going through a financial institution.
Ikuforiji served as the speaker of the assembly from 2005 to 2015.
In March 2012, Ikuforiji and Atoyebi were first arraigned before Justice Okechukwu Okeke on a 20-count charge bordering on misappropriation and money laundering.
The defendants pleaded not guilty and were granted bail.
However, they were re-arraigned before Justice Ibrahim Buba, after the case was reassigned.
Buba granted them bail in the sum of N500 million each, with sureties in like sum.
On September 26, 2014, the judge discharged Ikuforiji and his aide after upholding a no-case submission by the defendants.
Dissatisfied with the decision of the court, EFCC approached the Appeal Court.
In November 2016, the Appeal Court ruled that the money laundering trial against the defendants must continue, which prompted the defendants to approach the Supreme Court.
In its verdict, the apex court upheld the decision of the Court of Appeal and ordered that the case be sent back to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for reassignment.
The case was then returned to the Federal High Court for continuation of trial.