700m fraud: Court Dismisses Ize-Iyamu’s Application To Stop Trial

A federal high court sitting in Benin, Edo State, has dismissed the application of Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu’s trial on the money laundering charge against him and four others by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2015.

Ize-Iyamu, the Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the September 2020 governorship election in Edo State, had through his lawyer, Charles Edosomwan (SAN), challenged the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case.

Justice Umar Garba, the presiding judge in a ruling on the application on Tuesday, held that the matter before the court borders on money laundering which the federal high court has exclusive jurisdiction to hear and thereafter dismissed the defendant’s application.

Report has it that the case has been adequately adjourned till May 18 for further hearing.

The N700 million from Diezani Alison-Madueke, former minister of petroleum, according to the anti-graft agency in suit no. FHC/BE21C/2016 filed an eight-count, was given to the 1st defendant, in the buildup to the 2015 elections.

Dan Orbih, the Edo Peoples Democratic Party, Chairman, Lucky Imaseun, former deputy governor of Edo, Tony Azegbemi, a former house of Reprentatives member, and Efe Anthony, a Chieftain of the party, were listed with four other defendants in the suit, and Ize-Iyamu, had pleaded not guilty to the charges, setting the stage for their trial.