Ade Adesomoju, Abuja The Federal High Court on Friday dismissed the all the 13 counts of money laundering and passport fraud institu...
The Federal High Court on Friday dismissed
the all the 13 counts of money laundering and passport fraud instituted
by the Federal Government against a serving Justice of the Supreme
Court, Justice Sylvester Ngwuta.
Justice Ngwuta was among the judicial officers whose houses were
raided by the operatives of the Department of State Service in October
2016.
He was subsequently charged with various corruption offences by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation.
Ruling on an application by him on Friday, the trial judge, Justice John Tsoho, dismissed the charges on the grounds.
Justice Tsoho, whose ruling was anchored on an earlier judgment of
the Court of Appeal, held that the pre-conditions for instituting
charges against a judicial officer were not met before charging Justice
Ngwuta.
The judgment of the of the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal
delivered on December 12, 2017, and which Justice Tsoho relied on on Friday, had dismissed the corruption charges instituted against a serving judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Hyeldzira Nganjiwa.
The appeal court had dismissed the charges instituted by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission against the Federal High Court
judge on the basis that a serving judge could not be investigated or
prosecuted without being first disciplined by the National Judicial
Council.
Justice Ngwuta, through his counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), had
while arguing his client’s motion, submitted that by virtue of the said
Court of Appeal’s judgment in Nganjiwa’s case and the provisions of
section 158(1), Paragraph 21(8) of the Third Schedule to the
Constitution, the charges instituted against his client were
incompetent.
He maintained that going by the judgment of the Court of Appeal,
the complaints forming the basis of the charges instituted against him
ought to have been referred to the NJC and allowed the NJC to discipline
him before instituting the charges.
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