Alleged N1.85bn fraud: Court remands two REA officials

A Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday, ordered two staff of the Account and Finance Department of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) to be remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre over alleged N1.853 billion fraud.

Justice Emeka Nwite ordered the two officials; Umar Musa Laraye and Emmanuel Titus Pada, to be remanded pending their bail plea after they were arraigned on separate four-count charges.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Justice Nwite had, on June 6, issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Laraye, Pada and Henrientta Onomen Okojie for failure to appear in court for their arraignment.

The judge gave the order after Osuobeni Akponimisingha, counsel for the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), moved an oral application to the effect.

He then adjourned the matter until today for ICPC to produce Laraye and Pada in court, while Okojie’s case was fixed for June 14 (Friday).

The ICPC had preferred separate four-count charges against the affected officials over allegations of misappropriation of public funds meant for the provision of electricity to rural communities across the country.

In the first charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/204/24, the anti-corruption agency sued Pada as sole defendant.

The commission sued Karaye in the second charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/202/24, while Okojie was equally sued in the charge number: FHC/ABJ/CR/203/24.

When the cases involving Laraye and Pada were called, Akponimisingha informed the court that the matters were scheduled for them to take their plea.

The anti-corruption commission lawyer applied that the June 6 bench warrant be vacated against them since the defendants were in court and Justice Nwite granted the request.

After the separate four-count charges were read to them, they pleaded not guilty and Akponimisingha applied for a trial date.

But Idoko Alhassan, who appeared for the two defendants, told the court when the first matter involving Laraye was heard that he had already filed a bail application on behalf of his client dated June 11.

Alhassan said the application was duly served on the prosecution on Tuesday.

Responding, Akponimisingha said he was yet to receive the copy of the bail.application.

The judge equally said that the prosecution was still within time to respond to the application.

Justice Nwite, who adjourned the matter until June 20 for hearing of the bail application, ordered Laraye, including Pada, to be remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre.

He then fixed their trial until July 10.

NAN also reports that on June 6, the ICPC arraigned Usman Ahmed Kwakwa, also an official of REA, on a four-count charge bordering on fraud.

Kwakwa pleaded not guilty to the counts preferred against him.

Justice Nwite admitted him to a N50 million bail.

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