$1.6m fraud: Court refuses Ajudua bail

[Mirror]

An Ikeja High Court presided over by Justice Olubunmi Oyewole yesterday refused to grant bail to Fred Ajudua who is currently standing trial for a $1.6 million fraud.

Ajudua and his co-defendant, Charles Orie, were arraigned in 2003 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

The defendants are accused of defrauding two Dutch businessmen, Remy Cina and Pierre Vijgen, of $1.6 million between July 1999 and September 2000.

The trial resumed this month after many years owing to Ajudua's absence from the country.

The defendant thereafter applied to the court for bail through his counsel, Allens Agbaka.

Agbaka had asked the court to restore the bail revoked from his client on December 15, 2005 with the same condition with an additional surety or grant him a fresh bail, with conditions it deemed fit.

The lawyer submitted that his client, who had undergone kidney surgeries in India, was suffering from a complicated ailment and urged the court to grant the application.

But the EFCC counsel, Wemimo Ogunde (SAN), opposed the bail application, contending that the defendant could no longer enjoy the privilege of bail since he had delayed the trial for seven years.

National Mirror