The Supreme Court on Friday directed that the ₦1.35 billion corruption case involving former Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, and his sons, Mustapha and Aminu, should proceed, nullifying an earlier Court of Appeal ruling that had discharged them.
In a unanimous verdict delivered by a five-man panel headed by Justice Abubakar Sadiq Umar, the apex court upheld the appeal lodged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and overturned the Court of Appeal’s judgment delivered in July 2023.
The Supreme Court ruled that the EFCC’s appeal had merit and ordered Lamido and his sons to return to the Federal High Court in Abuja to present their defence in the matter.
Lamido, alongside his sons, Aminu Wada Abubakar, and their companies—Bamaina Holdings Limited and Speeds International Limited—are being prosecuted before Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court on a 37-count amended charge relating to money laundering and abuse of office.
The EFCC alleged that Lamido, who governed Jigawa State between 2007 and 2015, laundered N1.35bn in kickbacks from contractors handling state government projects.
At the close of the prosecution’s case, the defendants filed a no-case submission, arguing that the EFCC failed to establish a prima facie case against them.
Justice Ojukwu dismissed the application and held that the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence to warrant the defendants entering their defence.
However, the Court of Appeal, in July 2023, overturned the ruling and struck out the charges, a decision that prompted the EFCC to approach the Supreme Court.
The anti-graft agency argued that the appellate court erred in law by discharging the defendants despite what it described as overwhelming evidence linking them to the alleged offences.
In its judgment on Friday, the Supreme Court ordered that the charges be restored and directed the Federal High Court to proceed with the trial for Lamido and the other defendants to defend themselves.
