Attorney General Withdraws Forgery Charge Against Mike Ozekhome
A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama has struck out the forgery suit filed against Senior Advocate of Nigeria Mike Ozekhome. The court made this decision after the office of the Attorney General of the Federation withdrew the charges on Tuesday.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission had initially filed a three-count charge against Ozekhome on January 16. The charges focused on allegations of forgery. Ten days later, the office of the Attorney General took over the prosecution of the case.
During the resumed court session on Tuesday, which was originally scheduled for the arraignment of Ozekhome, the lawyer representing the Attorney General moved an application to withdraw the matter.
The lawyer, Rotimi Oyedepo, explained the reason for the sudden withdrawal to the presiding judge.
Oyedepo told the court that the office of the Attorney General needs more time to review the details of the matter. He noted that the investigation involves different government agencies. He added that taking time to combine these issues would help to strengthen the case.
During a previous court sitting, Oyedepo had promised the court that the government would follow proper legal procedures in handling the matter.
“The case is to be prosecuted with the highest standard of efficiency, effectiveness, diligence and compliance with due process of law,” Oyedepo stated.
Following the application for withdrawal on Tuesday, the presiding judge, Peter Kekemeke, officially struck out the case.
The original charges accused Ozekhome of knowingly presenting forged documents to a tribunal in the United Kingdom. These documents included a Nigerian international passport.
The government alleged that he used the fake papers to support his claim of ownership over a property located in London. The alleged offenses took place around August 2021 in the Maitama area of Abuja.
The London property dispute involved Ozekhome and the late retired Lieutenant General Jeremiah Useni. The London tribunal eventually dismissed the claims of Ozekhome after finding that the submitted documents were fake.
The tribunal ruled that the real owner of the property was Useni, who had used a false identity to hold the asset.
