Ajudua Remanded In Prison Over Alleged $1m Fraud
Justice Mojisola Dada of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja on Monday remanded alleged fraud kingpin, Fred Ajudua for allegedly defrauding one Ziad Abu Zalaf of Technical International Ltd, a company based in Germany the sum of $1m.
Ajudua is to remain behind bars until the determination of his bail application.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had on February 13, 2017 re-opened the charge its earlier filed against Ajudua in 2005.
In the charge, the EFCC had claimed that Ajudua, an alleged serial fraudster, and one Joseph Ochunor, an accomplice, had some time in 1993 defrauded one Ziad Abu Zalaf of Technical International Ltd., a company based in Germany of $1m.
The fraud case had earlier been struck out by Justice Morenikeji Obadina in 2009 for want of diligent prosecution after Ajudua failed to make an appearance in court on 24 occasions.
Ajudua was re-arraigned before Justice Mojisola Dada on 12 count charges bordering on conspiracy and fraud.
He, however, pleaded not guilty to all the count charge.
The EFCC also said alleged that Ajudua uttered forged Central Bank of Nigeria official Receipt No. 128 and No. 138 purported to have been issued by the CBN to Mr Ziad Abu Zalaf as genuine.
The anti-graft agency further accused him of forging a contract Completion Certificate purported to have issued by the Nigerian Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Falomo, Lagos to defraud Technical International Limited.”
Following the defendant’s plea, Counsel to Ajudua, Norrison Quakers through an application dated June 1st, applied for his client bail.
In his application, Quakers urged the court to grant the accused person bail because he was earlier granted bail by Justice Josephine Oyefeso in a related charge and he never jumped bail.
“We urged your lordship to grant the defendant’s bail because he was granted bail by your learned brother, he has never for once failed to attend court except when he was out of the country.
“Also, we want my Lord to consider his bail application because of his health condition.
“He will require medical attention from time to time and he cannot access that in the prison custody.
Reacting to the application, counsel to the EFCC, Saidu Atteh submitted, “My Lord, we shall be opposing the bail application but we leave the decision at the discretion of the court.
In her ruling, Justice Dada ordered that Ajudua be remanded in prison custody pending the court ruling on his bail application.
Atteh however informed the court that the prosecution will not be able to go on with the trial because they could not bring an interpreter to court as the witness is a German who is not very fluent in English Language.
The judge thereafter adjourned the matter till today, for commencement of trial.
Earlier, before the arraignment, Justice Dada has dismissed the application filed by Ajudua through his counsel Norrison Quakers to quash the alleged fraud charge filed against him by EFCC.