Obi, former Acting Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), has been acquitted by the Court of Appeal in Lagos. The judgment, delivered by Justice Ngozi Nwosu-Iheme on June 30, 2023, overturned the conviction handed down by Justice Mojisola Olateregun of the Federal High Court in Lagos on May 23, 2019.
The Court of Appeal also granted the discharge and acquittal of Obi, as well as the companies Global Seal Investments Ltd and Grand Pact Ltd, who were facing charges of theft, conversion, fraud, and money laundering.
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Obi, who was appointed as the acting-Director General of NIMASA in 2015 by President Muhammadu Buhari, had been prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in April 2016. The EFCC accused him and another NIMASA staff, Alu Dismass, of conspiring to convert N136 million belonging to NIMASA for personal use, in violation of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012.
Both Obi and Dismass pleaded not guilty to the charges and were granted bail. After the EFCC concluded its case, they filed a no-case submission, but Justice Olatoregun dismissed it and ordered them to present their defense. Ultimately, the Court of Appeal overturned their conviction and set them free.
Source: VANGUARD NEWS
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