The Supreme Court has ordered the resumption of the corruption trial involving Sule Lamido, former Jigawa State governor, and his sons, Mustapha and Aminu Lamido, over alleged financial crimes totaling N1.35 billion filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In a unanimous decision delivered by Justice Abubakar Umar for a five-member panel, the court upheld the EFCC’s appeal on Friday in Abuja.
As a result, the Supreme Court set aside the July 2023 judgment of the Court of Appeal that had discharged Lamido and his sons.
The court directed that the defendants return to the Federal High Court to answer the charges, instructing the EFCC to reinstate the case to allow them present their defence.
Lamido, his sons, Aminu Wada Abubakar, and two companies Bamaina Holdings Limited and Speeds International Limited were originally arraigned before Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
They were charged on a 37-count amended charge bordering on money laundering and abuse of office.
The EFCC alleged that Lamido, who governed Jigawa State from 2007 to 2015, laundered N1.35 billion in kickbacks from contractors handling state projects.
After the prosecution closed its case, the defendants filed a no-case submission, contending that the EFCC failed to establish a prima facie case against them.
The Federal High Court dismissed the application, holding that sufficient evidence had been presented to require the defendants to enter their defence.
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Lamido appealed the ruling, but the Court of Appeal in July 2023 overturned the decision and struck out the charges.
The EFCC then appealed to the Supreme Court, asking it to restore the Federal High Court’s ruling and order the continuation of the trial.
The commission argued that the Court of Appeal erred in law by discharging the defendants despite evidence linking them to the alleged offences.
