Yahaya Bello Prays Court To Set Aside Arrest Warrant Against Him

Former Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, has approached the Federal High Court, Abuja, seeking the court to set aside an arrest warrant issued against him.

Osun Defender reports that Justice Nwite, on Wednesday, ordered that EFCC should be issued a warrant for the arrest of Bello.

The judge directed that Bello be brought to court today to take his plea in the charge preferred against him.

In his prayers, the plaintiff’s lawyer, Abdulwahab Mohammed, SAN, told Justice Emeka Nwite that the court lacked jurisdiction to grant the order in the first instance.

He made this known on Thursday when the matter was called for the ex-governor to be arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on a 19-count money laundering charge.

Mohammed informed the court that a preliminary objection had already been filed before the court.

The lawyer, while urging the court to vacate the arrest warrant, said a High Court of Kogi had on February 9 restrained the anti-graft agency from arresting, detaining, or prosecuting Bello.

He said the order was challenged by the EFCC at the Court of Appeal, and the matter was already fixed for hearing.

He maintained that the issue of jurisdiction was a threshold that the court must address first.

However, EFCC’s lawyer, Kehinde Pinhero, SAN, disagreed with Mohammed’s submission.

According to him, the matter was fixed for Bello’s arraignment, and Mohammed, having announced an appearance for the ex-governor, could be served in the open court for the matter to proceed.

He said the arrest warrant was to ensure that Bello was produced in court to stand his trial since all efforts to effect the service on him had proved abortive.