Court orders remand of EFCC chair over contempt — second time in 12 weeks

A high court sitting in Kogi state has ordered the remand of Abdulrasheed Bawa, chairperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for contempt.

R.O. Ayoola, the presiding judge, ordered the inspector-general of police (IGP) to ensure the committal order is executed, just as he awarded N10 million against the EFCC.

He ordered that Bawa should be arrested and sent to the Kuje correctional centre for two weeks without any delay.

Ayoola had ordered Bawa to appear before the court on January 18 to explain why he should not be jailed for flouting an order given in December 2022, in a case filed by one Ali Bello.

The court had, on December 12, 2022, ruled in favour of Bello over his illegal arrest and detention by the EFCC.

But days after the court order, the EFCC re-arrested and re-arraigned Bello over alleged money laundering.

The anti-agency had filed a fresh application seeking to set aside and stay the execution of the December 12 judgment by the court over lack of merit.

Giving the order for Bawa’s arrest on Monday, the judge said Bello was arrested “in the face of a subsisting court order made by this honourable court of competent jurisdiction and without a warrant of arrest or being informed of the offence for which he was arrested”.

Meanwhile, on November 8, Chizoba Oji, the presiding judge of a federal capital territory (FCT) high court, ordered the remand of the EFCC boss over contempt.