Get Guardian on GoogleA Lagos Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, has struck out the alleged N6 billion money laundering charges against social media personality, Ismaila Mustapha, popularly known as Mompha, and discharged him.
The tria Justice Mojisola Dada while delivering judgment yesterday held that the pendency of a similar case before the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, rendered the charge before her court an act of forum shopping and an abuse of court process.
Consequently, the judge struck out all the charges against the defendant and discharged him.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Lagos had on January 12, 2022, arraigned Mompha alongside his company, Ismalob Global Investment Limited, on an eight-count charge.
Mompha and his Company alleged offences bordering on conspiracy to launder funds obtained through unlawful activity, retention of proceeds of criminal conduct, laundering of proceeds of unlawful activity, failure to disclose assets and property, possession of documents containing false pretences and use of property derived from an unlawful act.
One of the counts alleged that Mompha, one Ahmadu Mohammed, who is said to be at large, and Ismalob Global Investment Limited, sometime in 2016 in Lagos, conspired to conduct financial transactions valued at N5,998,884,653.18 with the intention of promoting specified unlawful activities, including obtaining money by false pretence.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to him.
During the trial, prosecution counsel, Suleiman Suleiman, called six witnesses and tendered several documentary exhibits in support of the case against the defendant.
The defence counsel, Kolawole Salami and Ademola Adefolaju however, did not call any witness.
Mompha stopped attending court proceedings after he was granted bail, with his international passport deposited as part of the bail conditions. He was further alleged that he subsequently obtained another passport and left the country.
However, while delivering judgment on Tuesday, Justice Dada held that the existence of the similar proceedings before the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, made the prosecution of the case before her court an abuse of court process.
The court, therefore, struck out the entire eight-count charge and discharged the defendant.
