Six
staff of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) implicated in an eight
billion Naira defaced and mutilated currency recycling scam, have been
remanded in prison custody on Tuesday.
This detention is
subsequent to their arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC), before Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel of a Federal
High Court sitting in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
The
suspects: Patience Okoro Eye, Afolabi Olufemi Johnson, Ilori Adekunle
Sunday, Kolawole Babalola, Olaniran Muniru Adeola and Fatai Adedokun
Yusuf, were arraigned on a five-count charge bordering on conspiracy,
fraud and stealing.
Specifically, the CBN employees were alleged
to have compromised the CBN’s Briquetting exercise, meant to mop up
mutilated and defaced higher denomination currencies from circulation,
to combat inflation.
Instead of destroying the currencies, they
allegedly recycled the notes and substituted them with newspapers neatly
cut to Naira sizes.
When the charges were read to them, they pleaded not guilty.
After
their plea, prosecuting counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, asked the court for a
trial date and for the defendants to be remanded in prison custody.
He opposed their bail applications, urging the counsel to the defendants to present their bail applications formally to court.
However, counsel to the first accused person, K.A. Lawal, made an oral application for bail. All other counsel followed suit.
Justice
Ayo- Emmanuel adjourned the matter to June 9, for hearing of the bail
applications and July 6 and 7, for commencement of trial.
He ordered that all the defendants be remanded in Agodi Prison custody, located in Ibadan.
Credit: Channels
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