The Nigerian government has lost a new bid to retry the ex-Abia Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu, for allegations of fraud and money laundering amounting to N7.6 billion.
The appellate court in Abuja threw away the government’s move in a judgment delivered in Abuja by Justice Joseph Oyewole on Wednesday.
Oyewole held that the record of appeal brought by the Federal Government was incompetent and unreliable for any court to use to grant its request.
Among others, Justice Oyewole said that the record of appeal was not compiled, signed and certified by any person known to law.
Specifically, Justice Oyewole said that the name of the persons, who compiled, signed and certified the record, was not reflected as required by law.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had prosecuted Kalu alongside Ude Udeogu, a former director of finance and accounts with the Abia state government; and Slok Nigeria Limited, Kalu’s company; on 39 counts of fraud involving N7.1 billion, at a federal high court in Lagos.
Mohammed Idris, who is now a justice of the court of appeal, had at the end of the trial, sentenced Kalu to 12 years imprisonment while Udeogu was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
The third defendant, Slok Nigeria Limited, was ordered to be wound up and its assets forfeited to the Nigerian government.
However, the supreme court on May 8, 2020, voided the trial and ordered a retrial following an appeal filed by Kalu’s co-defendant.
But Kalu asked the court to stop the commission from retrying him.
According to him, the supreme court’s pronouncement on retrial was peculiar to Udeogu, adding that it would amount to double jeopardy if he is allowed to be subjected to a fresh trial on the same charge.
In September 2021, Inyang Ekwo, judge of a federal high court, held that the supreme court did not specifically order that Kalu should be retried.
“He cannot be retried safe with an order of the supreme court,” the judge held.
Ekwo, however, held that since the apex court specifically ordered that the case file of Udeogu be returned to the federal high court, the EFCC can proceed with his retrial.
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