From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory,( FCT), Abuja, has discharged and aqcuitted a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, Babachir Lawal and five others from the N544M contract fraud offences brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In its ruling on Friday, the held that the prosecution agency, EFCC, failed to establish prima facie case against the Ex-SGF and the co-defendants.
Justice Charles Agbaza held that no ingredients of any offence was made out by the 11 witnesses that testified for the EFCC.
The Judge held that EFCC did not establish that Babachir Lawal was either a member of the Presidential Initiative for North East PINE that awarded the contract or a member of the Ministerial Tenders Board that vetted and gave approval to the disputed contract.
Besides, Justice Agbaza held that EFCC also failed to link Babachir Lawal with Bureau of Public Procurement BPP that issued a certificate of no objection to the contract before it was awarded.
In, the Judge discharged and aqcuitted all the defendants in the 10-count criminal charges against them for want of evidence to link them with the purported offences.
Babachir Lawal alongside his younger brother, Hamidu Lawal; Suleiman Abubakar; Apeh Monday and two companies, Rholavision Engineering Limited and Josmon Technologies Limited were prosecuted by the EFCC before Justice Charles Agbaza.
They faced a 10-count charge bordering on fraud relating to the removal of evasive plant species to the tune of N544 million for which they pleaded not guilty.
The EFCC had on Monday, November 30, 2020 re-arraigned the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal before Justice Agbaza.
Details later.