By Kayode Adeoti
A magistrate court sitting in Ilorin the Kwara State capital has revoked the bail earlier granted an Ado Ekiti based legal practitioner, Benjamin Onyeabo and one Dominic Ochic.
Onyeabo was said to have conspired with Ochic of No. 27 Igbehin Adun Area in Ekiti State to defraud the court to the tune of eleven million, six hundred thousand naira.
According to the First Information Report obtained from the court by Pilot Law, the complainant, Olusegun Olawoyin of Olusegun Olawoyin & Co. had forwarded his complaint to the Kwara State Commissioner of Police against the 1st accused person.
The FIR revealed that sometimes in 2014, Olawoyin filed a civil process on behalf of his client M.B Global Nigeria Ltd at the Ekiti State High Court using the office of the said accused person (Onyeabo) as the address of service.
He further complained that Onyeabo without his consent conspired with Ochic to fraudulently prepare and file terms of settlement in the matter which led to the court judgement
It also stated that Onyeabo collected eleven million, six hundred from the court on behalf of his client from December 2014 out of which he only paid the sum of one million six hundred and sixty six thousand seven hundred naira to the complainant.
FIR noted that the accused diverted the remaining amount to his personal use.
At the resumed hearing, the prosecutor, Inspector James Odaodu told the court that the accused persons have failed to comply with the bail terms, urging the court to revoke the bail.
He submitted further that the attitude of the accused has made one of their sureties to forward a letter to the court signifying interest to withdraw from the matter.
He also told the court that the accused have no respect for the order of the courts saying they fragrantly jumped bail, thereby forcing the court to issue bench warrant for their arrest.
He said, “We couldn’t get them but through their sureties, they jumped bail several terms, this is why one of their sureties has written a letter to withdraw his position. Court should revoke their bail because if still allowed to enjoy it, they will still not respect it.
The counsel to the accused, Tolulope Falokun however told the court to discountenance the submission of the prosecutor.
He argued that it is normal for a surety to withdraw his involvement in a matter, adding that there is no law that binds one from not withdrawing as a surety to an accused.
He further said, if the court revokes the bail of the accused persons, they might not be able to run around to settle the debt they’ve incurred.
He said if the court grants the accused bail they will provide reliable sureties.
Magistrate Nurudeen Adeyanju who seems to have ceded to the submission of the prosecutor revoked the accused persons’ bail even as he adjourned the matter to 10th January, 2018.
