FG ready to prosecute Anosike, others over Daily Times purchase
By innocent anaba
Federal Government, yesterday, said it was now ready for the prosecution of Fidelis Anosike and his brother, Noel, their company Folio Communications Ltd, one Nicholas Okoye and Gogo Kurubo for criminal conspiracy over the purchase of Daily Times of Nigeria in the matter before a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos.
Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, SAN, who filled the charge against the Anosikes, informed trial judge in the matter, yesterday, Justice Pat, that government was willing to prosecute the accused persons.
The accused persons are facing a 21-count charge for stealing of over N3billion worth of property belonging to the foremost newspaper.
At the lasting sitting of the court, Justice Ajoku had refused to grant Adoke’s request to withdraw the charges against the accused persons under controversial circumstances.
At the resumed hearing of the matter, yesterday, counsel to the AGF, said his boss had given him instructions for trial of the accused persons to commence, adding that the directive was necessitated by the conclusion of investigation by the Police and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
When the judge sought to know why the accused persons were not in court, their counsel said it was because they were not served with the charge, adding that he only got wind of the case in the newspapers.
But the state counsel objected, saying that it was not true that the accused persons had not been duly served, urging the court to peruse the court records to see the proof of service.
After checking the court file, Justice Ajoku said that all the accused persons were served with the charge sheet on August 2, 2010.
The court in a short ruling, said that the court has taken judicial notice of the fact that the first day the case came up for hearing, the accused persons were represented in court and directed counsel to the accused persons to ensure that they were in court at the next sitting. Further hearing was fixed for February 21, 2011 for the arraignment of the accused persons.
According to the charge, the Anosikes, Folio Communications were said to have sometimes in June 2004 conspired among themselves to obtain about 140,252,900 shares units which comprised about 56 per cent out of the total of 233,754,840 shares of Daily Times of Nigeria Plc valued at the sum of N750million acquired from the Bureau of Public Enterprise, BPE, by false pretence and with representation of possessing the means to pay for the acquisition of same with fresh funds which they did not possess but with intent to defraud the federal government.
