A dramatic turn of events unfolded in the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday as Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Adeola Adedipe applied to withdraw his appearance as counsel for former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello. Bello is facing a 19-count charge of money laundering, breach of trust, and misappropriation of public funds to the tune of approximately N80.2 billion.
Adedipe’s application came after the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) urged the court to dock him for failing to ensure Bello’s availability for trial, despite an undertaking to do so. EFCC’s lead counsel, Kemi Pinhero (SAN), argued that Adedipe’s actions constituted a breach of professional conduct and requested the court to exercise disciplinary jurisdiction over him.
Adedipe denied making any undertaking to secure Bello’s presence and claimed that the EFCC had treated the court with disrespect by failing to execute a warrant for the defendant’s arrest. He notified the court that his team was unaware of Bello’s whereabouts and sought to withdraw his appearance, citing section 349(8) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015.
The EFCC opposed Adedipe’s application, arguing that it was an afterthought and should not be countenanced by the court. The prosecution counsel urged the court to invite Adedipe to the dock for summary punishment. Trial Justice Emeka Nwite has yet to rule on the matter.