A no-case submission by a member of the House of Representatives, Nicholas Mutu being tried with two others on money laundering-related charges, has been rejected by a Federal High Court in Abuja.
Mutu representing Bomadi/Patani Federal Constituency of Delta State is along with two others – Airworld Technologies Ltd, and Oyien Homes Ltd – accused of laundering about N320million.
Justice Folashade Giwa-Ogunbanjo, in a ruling on Monday, ordered Mutu and his co-defendants to enter their defence as they have a case to answer in respect of the allegations made against them in the 13-count amended charge on which they are being tried.
Justice Giwa-Ogunbanjo held that the prosecution has adduced sufficient evidence to establish a prima facie case against the three defendants to warrant their being called upon to enter defence.
Mutu, described as the longest serving member of the House of Representatives, who has maintained his seat since he was first elected in 1999, was said to have committed the alleged offences between August 2014 and August 2016 when he served as the Chairman of the House of Representatives’ Committee on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
Credit: THE NATION
