The Federal High Court, Lagos, via the sitting judge, Mojisola Dada, has issued a warrant of arrest for Innoson Motors boss, Innocent Chukwuma and bro
The Federal High Court, Lagos, via the sitting judge, Mojisola Dada, has issued a warrant of arrest for Innoson Motors boss, Innocent Chukwuma and brought before the court on March 1. The judge made the order following Chukwuma’s failure to appear before the court for the second time for his arraignment on criminal charges preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in his face-off with the Guaranty Trust Bank, GTB.
A bench warrant is hereby served on Innocent Chukwuma, he will remain in custody till the next adjourned date.
“The case is adjourned till March 14 for possible arraignment,” Justice Dada said.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had back in December, 2017, arrested the Innoson boss, suing him, his company, and his brother. The EFCC accused the 3 of conspiracy to obtain property by false pretense. The EFCC on January 17, 2018 had attempted to arraign Chukwuma alongside his company Innoson Motors Limited and Charles Chukwuma but he was absent in court. They were to be arraigned on a four-count charge of conspiracy to obtain property by false pretenses, obtaining property by false pretenses, stealing and forgery.
According to the charge sheet, the defendants committed the offences between 2009 and July 2011 in Lagos. The EFCC alleged that defendants with intent to defraud, conspired to obtain by false pretenses containers of motorcycle, spare parts and raw materials property of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) from Mitsui OSK Lines Limited, Apapa, Lagos. The defendants are alleged to have fraudulently induced staff of Mitsui OSK and Maersk Line to deliver to them via their clearing agents the goods which were imported from China in the name of GTB by falsely pretending that they were authorised by the bank to clear the goods.
The offences according to the EFCC, are in contravention of Sections 1(1)(b), 1(3), and 8(a) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2016 and Sections 309(9), 388, 465 and 467(1)(j) of the Criminal Code of Lagos State 2003. Counsel to the defendants, Mr. U. Onwukwe, had told the court that his clients were absent because they had not been served but that he only learnt of the proposed arraignment after seeing it on social media.
Onwukwe also informed the court that he had filed an application challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case. Responding, EFCC counsel had also accused Chukwuma of evading being served court processes and Justice ordered that the charge sheet be served on the defence counsel.
