ABUJA- The Abuja High Court sitting in Gudu, Abuja , has quashed a two-count charge of conspiracy and forgery against former Anambra governor Chinwoke Mbadinuju.
The court also set aside the leave earlier granted to the police to prefer the criminal charge against him.

Justice Abubakar Talba voided the charge in a ruling he delivered at the resumed hearing of the trial. The judge held that the police failed to establish any “prima facie” case against the accused person and also held that the leave earlier granted the police was wrong.

Mbadinuju was charged for alleged forgery of police documents relating to the murder six years ago, of a former Chairman the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Onitsha branch, Barnabas Igwe and his wife, Amaka.

The accused lawyer, Chief Tochukwu Onwugbufor (SAN), asked the court to quash the charge and argued that the judge made an error ab-initio, in granting the police leave to prosecute his client.

He contended that necessary documents, including Mbadinuju’s statement on the alleged forgery case, in which he stated his own side of the case, were not before the court.

The police had, however, urged the court to discountenance the argument of Mbadinuju and said there was nothing wrong in law with the leave earlier granted by the court. Ruling on the application today, Talba upheld the argument of Onwugbufor and quash the entire charge against the accused.

Meanwhile, reprieve has come the way of two lawyers, Charles Ogbole and Osuagwu Ugochukwu, detained by the Police for alleged extortion. Justice Abubakar Talba of an Abuja High Court, in a ruling, granted the duo bail with the sum of N2 million and a surety each. The ruling followed an application by the Prosecution Counsel, Mr. Simon Lough, seeking for an order to remand the suspects in custody. “ Considering the facts before the court and the argument by both counsel, the court is of the view that it would not be to the interest of justice to keep the accused in custody.

“Since it will not bring joy to the court to remand the accused in custody without
charge being preferred against them, the court therefore holds that the duo be granted bail,” Talba said. Lough had told the court that the duo were arrested on Oct. 3, following a petition filed against them by the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Jerry Agada. He said the application was to enable Police continue their investigation in the petition against the suspects. Lough, who urged the court to grant his application, said the duo were arrested over an allegation of criminal conspiracy, extortion and defamation. The accused counsel, Mr. Victor Ekim, urged the court to grant his clients bail, saying that it would assist in the government’s policy to decongest the prisons.

Ekim therefore urged the court to grant his clients bail since they were still presumed innocent.

Talba, however, adjourned the matter to Oct.21, to enable prosecution complete its investigation and prefer charges against the accused.