By Lukman Olabiyi
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has filed an appeal to challenge the unfreezing of the Guaranty Trust Bank account of Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) by the Federal High Court, Lagos.
The order unfreezing Ozekhome’s account, through which he received N75 million legal fee from Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose, was delivered on Monday by Justice Abdulaziz Anka.
However, not satisfied with the court’s ruling, EFCC has approached the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal to challenge Anka’s verdict on the matter.
EFCC’s prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo, in the appeal, prayed the court to upturn the lower court’s verdict, saying Anka erred in law to unfreeze the account.
The EFCC had, in the application taken before Anka to freeze Ozekhome’s account, claimed that the money, which Fayose paid Ozekhome, was part of the N2.26 billion arms fund allegedly misapplied during the President Goodluck Jonathan administration.
Anka, after hearing a counter-application by Ozekhome, vacated his earlier order restraining the lawyer from accessing the money in his bank account.