Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court in Lagos has stepped down from the ongoing $42.48 million fraud case involving a British citizen and two Indian nationals accused of defrauding Ecobank Plc through a failed rice importation transaction.
The decision followed concerns raised by the judge over a petition filed against him during the course of the proceedings.
The case involves British national Marcus Wade and Indian nationals Prem Garg and Devashish Garg, alongside their firms, Wilben Trade Limited and Agrico Agbe Limited.
The Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation had instituted criminal charges against the defendants, accusing them of conspiracy, fraud and obtaining money under false pretences.
Prosecutors alleged that the defendants secured $42.48 million from Ecobank in 2015 after presenting a rice importation deal that later became the subject of dispute.
The matter, which was filed before the court in 2022, has experienced repeated delays. Despite several adjournments and court notices, the defendants have yet to appear before the court to take their plea.
At Monday’s proceedings, none of the accused persons was present in court. However, counsel representing the first, second and fourth defendants, Demola Seriki, announced his appearance. Counsel representing the nominal complainant informed the court that the prosecuting counsel was unable to travel from Abuja to Lagos for the hearing.
During the sitting, Justice Aluko drew attention to a petition lodged against him after he granted an adjournment requested by counsel to the nominal complainant. The judge disclosed that the petition accused him of “gross misconduct.”
According to him, although the petition was submitted anonymously, investigations traced it to O. Babajide of the chambers of Sofunde, Osakwe, Ogundipe & Belgore.
Addressing the allegations, the judge defended the actions taken by the court throughout the proceedings. He stressed that successful administration of justice requires cooperation from all parties involved in a case.
Justice Aluko noted that the defendants had consistently failed to appear before the court despite being given several opportunities and receiving official notices regarding the proceedings.
He also revealed that three separate notices had been issued in connection with the matter, dismissing suggestions that the court had acted improperly or attempted to mislead any party involved.
The judge maintained that all actions taken in the case were in line with established legal procedures and aimed at ensuring fairness to all parties.
Rejecting claims of bias, he stated that he had no personal interest in the case and had treated the matter like every other case before his court.
“I do not have any personal interest in this case. Thousands of cases pass through this court, and this matter is not an exception,” he said.
Following his remarks, Justice Aluko announced his withdrawal from the case and ordered that the case file be returned to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for reassignment to another judge.
The development is expected to further delay the long-running prosecution, which has remained stalled for years due to the absence of the defendants and a series of procedural setbacks.
The allegations against the foreign nationals and their companies remain unresolved, with fresh proceedings now expected to commence before a new judge once the matter is reassigned.
