EFCC Press Release
The case
involving a former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva, who is being
prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, before
Justice A. Y Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Abuja, for allegedly stealing
from the coffers of the state to the tune of N19.2bn while being the governor
between 2007 and 2011, could not go on as expected, on Tuesday, April 28, 2015.
The matter was initially adjourned to
today for ruling on an application filed by the third accused, Gbenga Balogun,
through his counsel Israel Olorundare, SAN, praying the court to first
determine the legal standing of the lead prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs,
SAN, to handle the matter, and also to determine his motion challenging the
competence of the 42-count charge.
However, Justice Mohammed sent in words
through one of his assistants that ruling was not yet ready and asked counsel
to agree on a date. Consequently, the case was adjourned to May 14, 2015 for
ruling on the third accused motion, having confirmed the date to be convenient
for the court.
Sylva along with his co-accused, Francis
Okokwo, Gbenga Balogun, and Samuel Ogbuku, were alleged to have used three
companies - Marlin Maritime Limited, Eat Catering Services Limited, and
Haloween-Blue Construction and Logistics Limited to fraudulently siphon money
from the Bayelsa State coffers between 2009 and 2012, under false pretence of
using the withdrawn money to augment salaries of the state government workers.
Wilson Uwujaren
Head,
Media & Publicity
28th
April, 2015
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