Author: Staff Editor

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Tuesday commenced a trial-within-trial in the ongoing prosecution of six persons accused of plotting to overthrow the government of President Bola Tinubu, by calling its first witness to defend the voluntariness of extra-judicial statements made by the defendants. The trial-within-trial is aimed at determining whether statements allegedly made by the defendants to military investigators were obtained voluntarily or under duress, coercion, torture, or inducement, as alleged by the defence. When the proceedings commenced on Tuesday, the trial judge, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, cautioned parties to restrict themselves strictly to issues relating to the…

Justice Maryanne Anineh of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on Monday, May 11, 2026, admitted in evidence newspaper publications tendered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the trial of former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele, over the alleged unlawful naira redesign. While leading the eighth prosecution witness (PW8), Jegede Oluwasegun, an official of the National Library, in his testimony, prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, presented certified copies of The Punch, ThisDay, Vanguard, Daily Sun, and The Nation newspapers containing reports on the alleged unlawful naira redesign, alongside…

The Lagos State Government has announced plans to introduce a state-issued driver’s licence in partnership with the Federal Government as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen road safety, improve traffic regulation, and ease licensing procedures for motorists across the state. The Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi, disclosed this on Monday during the 2025 ministerial press briefing held in Alausa, Ikeja. Osiyemi explained that when the initiative becomes operational, motorists would have the option of obtaining either the existing federal driver’s licence or the newly proposed Lagos State-issued licence. According to him, the initiative is aimed at enhancing compliance with traffic…

A fresh crisis is brewing within the Surulere chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) following allegations that influential party leaders are attempting to impose a preferred aspirant ahead of the Lagos State House of Assembly primaries. The controversy has heightened tension within the party, with aggrieved stakeholders accusing powerful political interests of undermining internal democracy and plotting to edge out actor-turned-politician, Desmond Elliott, despite his years of legislative experience and grassroots support. Some stakeholders alleged that the growing “power arrogance” and political domination linked to the camp of former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, must be…

Justice Maryann Anineh of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, sitting in Maitama, on Monday, May 11, 2026, revoked the bail granted to former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, and issued a bench warrant for his arrest following his absence in court to face his criminal prosecution. Mamman has remained out of circulation and untraceable since he was found guilty and convicted on May 7, 2026, on all 12 counts bordering on money laundering involving ₦33.8 billion by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, sitting in Maitama, Abuja. The former minister, alongside seven others, is being prosecuted by…

The Federal High Court in Lagos has dismissed a suit filed by FBN Quest Trustees Limited and a court-appointed receiver, describing the action as “vexatious,” “frivolous,” and a “gross abuse of court process.” In his judgment, Justice Akintayo Aluko not only struck out the suit but also ordered the plaintiffs and their counsel to pay millions of naira in damages and legal costs. Most notably, the court directed senior lawyer Norrison Quakers, SAN, to personally pay ₦2 million to the defendants for instituting what the court described as a frivolous action that negatively affected the reputation of the Regional Centre…

A prosecution witness, PW15, Ramalan Abdullahi, on Friday, May 8, 2026, told the Federal Capital Territory, FCT High Court, Maitama, Abuja, how a property located at No. 35 Danube Street, Maitama, Abuja, was allegedly purchased for the naira equivalent of ₦950 million, paid in United States dollars. Abdullahi, a legal practitioner with the Federal Capital Development Authority, FCDA, testified before Justice Maryanne Anineh in the ongoing trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Adoza Bello. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is prosecuting Bello alongside Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu on a 16-count charge bordering on criminal breach…

Former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, has been declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over alleged fraud linked to the ministry she headed. In a notice published on its website, the anti-graft agency called on members of the public with useful information on her whereabouts to contact any of its offices through the telephone numbers provided. The commission said Farouq, 52, is an indigene of Zamfara State, with her last known address listed as EN008, Okpo River, off Agulu Street, Maitama. Farouq served as minister between 2019 and 2023 under…

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Thursday convicted a former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, on a 12-count charge of money laundering involving ₦33.8 billion preferred against him by the Federal Government. In a judgment delivered by the trial judge, James Omotosho, the court held that the prosecution, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), had proved its case against the former minister beyond reasonable doubt, as required by law. The judge held that the prosecution established that at least ₦22 billion was siphoned by the defendant and his cronies, stating that: “This is sufficient to sustain the…

Justice Maryanne Anineh of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, admitted into evidence a prior judgment of the FCT High Court against former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Adoza Bello. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is prosecuting Bello alongside Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu on a 16-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving the sum of ₦110.4 billion. At the resumed hearing, prosecution counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, informed the court that he was concluding the examination-in-chief of Prosecution Witness 14 (PW14), Nicholas Okehone, an internal…