Mohammed Bello Adoke, a former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), was cleared of all charges related to money laundering by an Abuja Federal High Court.
The Federal High Court, Abuja’s Justice Inyang Ekwo supported Adoke’s “no case” argument against the allegations of money laundering.
Adoke and property developer Abubakar Aliyu were prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2017 for allegedly laundering around N300 million.
The EFCC claimed before Judge Kutigi that the funds were a bribe from the 2011 sale of the oil block by Malabu Oil & Gas Ltd., notwithstanding the agency’s admission before Ekwo that Adoke had taken a mortgage from Unity Bank.
On March 28, 2024, Kutigi acknowledged the inconsistency while denying the allegations, scolding the EFCC for squandering the court’s four years of time by bringing charges against Adoke and other defendants.
However, Justice Ekwo stated on Friday that Adoke, the first defendant, was not charged with any crime because the EFCC had not produced any evidence to support that claim.
Ekwo dismissed the allegations against him and maintained the no-case submission.
However, the judge decided that since Aliyu, the second defendant, has a case to answer, he must begin his defense.
