Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, on Tuesday, adjourned till February 13 further hearing in the trial of Waripamo-Owei Emmanuel Dudafa, an aide to former President Goodluck Jonathan, accused N5.1 billion fraud.
It will be recalled that Dudafa was arraigned alongside one Iwejuo Joseph Nna a. k. a. Taiwo Ebenezer and Olugbenga Isaiah by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a 23-count charge.
Some of the companies allegedly used by the duo in committing the alleged offences included Seagate Property Development and Investment Limited, Avalon Global Property Development Company Limited; Iwejuo Joseph Nna and Pluto Property and Investment Company Limited; Iwejuo Joseph Nna and Rotate Interlink Services Limited.
Others were Ibejige Services Limited; DE Jakes Fast Food and Restaurant Nigeria Limited and Ebiwise Resources.
At Tuesday’s proceedings, EFCC’s lawyer, Rotimi Oyedepo, continued with the cross-examination of Dudafa in a trial-within-trial being conducted to determine whether or not his statements to the commission were voluntarily made.
In his response to one of the questions from the EFCC’s lawyer, Dudafa claimed he was never offered administrative bail by the EFCC while in its custody for 60 days.
“I did not know whether or not I was offered administrative bail on the 18th of May, 2016. There was no time I was released on bail by the commission throughout the 60 days I was in detention,” Dudafa said.
However, the EFCC’s lawyer later sought the admission of a document allegedly signed by Dudafa when he was offered administrative bail by the agency. The document was admitted by the court as an exhibit.
Dudafa also maintained that he was never remanded in EFCC’s custody pursuant to a magistrate court’s order.
Oyedepo maintained that the commission actually secured an order from a magistrate court to detain him.
The proceedings was however halted following an objection raised by Dudafa’s lawyer to the admissibility of the remand order as an exhibit.
Justice Idris adjourned till February 13 for ruling on the admissibility of the document and for continuation of trial-within-trial.