- Sends them back to prison pending perfection of bail
A Federal high court in Abuja on Friday admitted 109 foreign nationals allegedly involved in cybercrimes to bail in the sum of one billion Naira (N1b).
That was after a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dr Ogwu James Onoja successfully argued their bail application before the court.
Specifically, the trial judge, Justice Ekerete Akpan, ordered all the 109 defendants to produce five sureties in the the sum of N200m each.
The sureties must in addition be residents in Abuja and must each have landed property worth N200m.
They are to also swear to affidavit of means and submit to the court, original copies of documents of their property which shall be verified by the Registrar of the court.
Justice Akpan further ordered that the accused persons and their five sureties must submit all their original travelling documents with the court registrar and must not travel out of Nigeria throughout the period of their trial.
The defendants and sureties are to also submit two copies of their recent passport photograph with the court.
Justice Akpan agreed with Ogwu Onoja SAN that the essence of bail is to allow defendants prepare for defence and that granting such bail is at the discretion of the court.
The Judge said that he was not unmindful of the fact that the accused persons are foreigners but that the law of the country presumes them innocent until the contrary has been established.
Pending the perfection of the bail conditions, Justice Akpan ordered that the males among the accused persons be remanded at Kuje prison while the female ones are to be kept at Keffi prison in Nasarawa state.
The Inspector General of Police IGP had put the 109 defendants on trial on 6-counts bordering on cybercrimes allegedly committed in Abuja in 2024.
However, the defendants who are mainly Chinese, Indonesia, Brazil, Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand nationals pleaded not guilty to the the charges.
Meanwhile Justice Akpan has fixed February 27 next year for their trial.
The Inspector General of Police was represented at the proceedings by lawyer A. S Egwu who vehemently objected to the bail of the accused persons through a counter affidavit.
His objection did not stand on the ground that grant of bail is at the discretion of the court and the nature of charges against the defendants.
In the instant case, Justice Akpan held that the charges against the foreigners are not capital ones and as such bailable with conditions.
At the time of this report, all the accused persons have been taken to prison on remand.
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