Court Withholds Decision In Metuh’s Trial Two Years After Concluding Hearing As EFCC Writes Judge

There is a growing concern about the inability of the judge
handling the trial of the former spokesman of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh, to deliver ruling about two
years after parties adopted their written addresses and made
concluding submissions.

Metuh was arraigned before Justice Ishaq Bello of the High Court
of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Maitama, Abuja, in
January 2016.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) accused him,
among others, of destroying evidence in his criminal case.

Metuh, who is also being tried by the EFCC at the Federal High
Court in Abuja for his alleged involvement in the diversion of arms
procurement funds, in the case at the FCT High Court, is said to
have destroyed the statement he wrote to EFCC operatives during
investigation.

Read Also: Dasuki Gate: Court admits Metuh’s account of N400m
expenditure in evidence
The prosecution team, led by Sylvanus Tahir, closed its case on
October 10, 2016, after calling two witnesses.

The defence, thereafter, made a “no-case” submission, following
which parties adopted their written addresses in the submission on
January 31, last year.

The judge adjourned for ruling on the “no-case” submission,
which parties are still waiting for till date.

When The Nation visited the court last week to enquire if a date
had been fixed for the ruling, an official of the court said no
date had been fixed.

The reporter was advised to check back “any day next week” (this
week).

Also, The Nation learnt that the prosecution, having waited to
no end on the matter, wrote the court’s Registrar for a date for
the ruling in the Metuh case and another matter too, which seemed
stuck in the court.

In the letter sighted in Abuja, the EFCC prayed the court “for
dates in respect of the …FRN v. Olisa Metuh, and FRN/Julius Ola
Peters & Five Others.”

On Metuh’s case, the prosecution recalled its history and
stressed that since the court failed to deliver its ruling on the
“no-case” submission on the earlier scheduled date of March 7, last
year, the court was yet to deliver the ruling.

“On the said date, the ruling was not ready. Since then, the
case was adjourned to various dates, but the ruling is not yet to
be delivered,” the letter said.

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