Mike Ozekhome (SAN) and Ponfa Useni appeared in an FCT High Court on Friday to face a 12-count charge involving alleged property fraud in the UK.
Both defendants pleaded not guilty before Justice Chizoba Orji.
The Federal Government alleges that Ozekhome and Useni conspired to forge a Nigerian passport in the name of “Tali Shani”—a fictitious identity—to claim a London residence.
The prosecution, led by Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), further accuses Ozekhome of abetting personation through a joint power of attorney with a non-existent person, unlawfully taking control of the disputed Randall Avenue property as well as collecting £18,000 in rent derived from the property.
The court noted that the late General Jeremiah Useni is at the centre of the alleged fraud. With the defendants maintaining their innocence, the matter is now set to proceed to trial.
However, Ozekhome’s lawyer, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo, SAN, and counsel to his co-defendants, F. R. Onoja, pleaded for their release on bail, an application that was not opposed by the prosecution.
Consequently, Justice Orji granted the defendants bail in the sum of N10million each, with a surety each in like sum.
The sureties must be owners of landed property within the FCT, even as it ordered the defendants to surrender their international passports and would not travel outside the country without permission.
Justice Orji noted that because the hearing fell on a Friday, the defendants would be allowed to return home if they were unable to finalize their bail requirements before the close of business.
However, she explicitly ordered them to return on Monday to complete the process.
Failure to perfect the bail conditions by then will result in the defendants being remanded in prison.
Notably, this follows a previous legal victory for Ozekhome, where the court struck out a separate three-count charge filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) regarding the same disputed UK property.
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