A High Court in Uyo on Thursday granted bail to Prof. Ignatius Uduk, who was recently sentenced to three years jail term for electoral offences.

The presiding judge, Justice Okon Okon admitted Uduk to bail following an application for bail on Thursday, by his counsel, Chief Kalu Umeh.

Umeh prayed the court to grant Uduk bail to enable him to take care of his ailing health, pending the determination of the appeal against his conviction.

Counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission, Mr Daniel Nwike, opposed the bail application, and urged the court not to admit Uduk to bail.

It would be recalled that an Uyo High Court presided by Justice Bassey Nkanang, on February 5, sentenced Uduk to three years jail term.

The court found him guilty of electoral offences committed during the 2019 election in Essien Udin Constituency, Akwa Ibom.

Uduk, a professor of Human Kinetics at University of Uyo, who was preparing his appeal against the judgement, had also approached a High Court to grant him bail on health grounds.

Ruling on the bail application, Okon admitted Uduk to bail in the sum of N2 million, with two sureties.

The Judge added that the applicant must not travel out of the country within the period, and should deposit his international passport with the court.

Speaking on behalf of Uduk’s legal team, Ita Enag, thanked the court for admitting their client to bail while the appeal against his conviction remained on course.

“We shall expedite action to meet the bail conditions so that the applicant will be released to get medical attention, pending the appeal,” he said.(NAN)

Justice Dairus Khobo of the Kaduna High Court, on Tuesday, sentenced one Nathan Edward, 40, to two years imprisonment for N15 million fraud.

The judge sentenced the convict after he pleaded guilty to the charge of conspiracy and fraud.

Delivering his judgment, Justice Khobo held that the prosecution successfully proved the offences of conspiracy and fraud against Edward beyond reasonable doubt.

“I hereby sentence you, Edward, to two years imprisonment without an option of fine with regards to count one and also two years without an option of fine with regards to count two,” he said.

“The four years are to run concurrently and I also order restituition as stated earlier in favour of the complainant, Tabitha Innocent.

“All money in the account of the convict shall be applied to offset the said N15 million and if the money is inadequate, the movable and immovable assets of the convict shall be jointly and/or severally sold to offset the total amount fraudulently collected from the complainant,” he said.

Earlier, Precious Onyeneho, Counsel to the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC), told the court that the convict committed the offences sometime in September 2024 in Kaduna.

Onyeneho said that the defendant and two others at large dishonestly deceived Innocent to pay N15 million to his FCMB account for six plots of land, located at Kujama in Kaduna.

The prosecutor said that as soon as the convict confirmed that money had been paid into his account, he avoided calls from the complainant.

The prosecutor said that subsequently all efforts made by Innocent to get her money back proved abortive.

Onyeneho said the offences contravened the Penal Code of Kaduna State, 2017.(NAN)

A High Court in Kaduna on Tuesday ordered the forfeiture of a Toyota Venza 2012, a Mercedes Benz C1300 2016 model belonging to a convict, Anthony Kelechukwu, to the Federal Govenment.

The court also ordered the forfeiture of N13 million belonging to the convict.

The Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC), charged Kelechukwu with internet fraud.

Delivering judgment, Justice Dairus Khobo, sentenced Kelechukwu to three years imprisonment with an option of N200, 000 fine.

He ordered that the N13 million being the balance in his Opay, Kuda and Access bank account should be forfeited to the Federal Government through the EFCC and the accounts be closed permanently.

The judge also ordered the forfeiture of two HP laptops and iPhone 11, 14 and 13 pro max which were recovered from the convict.

Kelechukwu was convicted after he prayed the court for a plea bargain agreement.

Earlier, the EFCC counsel, Mr Precious Onyeneho, said the convict committed an offence punishable under the provisions of the advance fee fraud.

Onyeneho told the court that the convict was arrested following actionable intelligence about the activities of syndicates of fraudsters operating in High Cost Narayi Kaduna.

He said that on receiving the report, investigation was carried out upon which Kelechukwu was arrested and fraudulent documents found in his possession.

Following the plea of the convict and his extra-judicial statements, the prosecution reviewed the facts of the case and tendered the statements of evidence recovered from him at the point of arrest.

Onyeneho urged the court to convict Kelechukwu in line with his plea and the exhibits tendered before it.(NAN)