Admin l Sunday, April 07, 2019
KADUNA, Nigeria – Lawyer to Mr. Ugwu Ejike Fank, a Kaduna-based businessman has said that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) misrepresented facts and caused total falsehood to be published when it said in a press statement that a Kaduna State High Court convicted his client and sent him to 2 years jail term.
In a rejoinder, Nicholas Oche said he represented his client when the matter came up for hearing at the Kaduna State High Court. “We are the counsel that represented our client in that case, between him and the EFCC, by virtue of which we are well conversant and abreast with the facts”, he said, adding that it is not true that his client has been convicted and sentenced to two years imprisonment by Honourable Justice Mohammed Tukur of the Kaduna state High Court on Thursday, April 4, 2019.
He said the case never went on full trial and therefore his client, a businessman, Mr. Ugwu Ejike Frank could not have been found guilty of the alleged offence and that his client issued a cheque based on expected proceeds into the account, but unfortunately he was duped by a fraudster, which resulted into petition and consequently charged with an alleged offence of issuing a dishonoured cheque by the EFCC.
He said his client agreed to enter a plea bargain agreement with the EFCC owing to the fact that he resides faraway outside Kaduna state and for convenient stake. He explained that his client entered into a plea bargain with the EFCC following which he was given an option of fine. That based on the plea bargain, the court pronounced an option of fine to his client and not two years imprisonment as published by the EFCC.
He said that his client is a responsible family man and has since resumed his normal business activity.
“We are therefore using this medium to call on well meaning Nigerians and the general public to vehemently disregard as false, the publication made by EFCC and any other media that carried same publication against our client”, he said.
A REJOINDER TO THE FALSE PUBLICATION AGAINST UGWU EJIKE FRANK
We act as solicitors to Ugwu Ejike Frank, hereinafter referred to as “our client”. Our client has drawn our attention to the malicious and false publication made against his person by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on the 5th day of April, 2019.
For the record; we wish to state that the publication was false and not the true pictured of what transpired between our client and the EFCC and should stand disregarded.
We further wish to state that we are the counsel that represented our client in that case, between him and the EFCC, by virtue of which we are well conversant and abreast with the facts and provide as follows:
- That it is untrue that our client has been sentenced to two years imprisonment by Honourable Justice Mohammed Tukur of the Kaduna state High Court on Thursday, April 4, 2019.
- That the case never went on full trial to proved our client guilty of the alleged offence which he was charged.
- That our client issued the cheque based on expected proceeds into the account, but unfortunately he was duped by a fraudster, which resulted into petition and consequently charged with an alleged offence of issuing a dishonoured cheque by the EFCC.
- That our client agreed to enter a plea bargain agreement with the EFCC owing to the fact that he resides faraway outside Kaduna state and for convenient stake. 5. That as par the terms of the plea bargain, our client will agree as to the commission of the offence and option of fine be given to him.
- That based on the plea bargain, the Court pronounced an option of fine to our client and not two years imprisonment as published by the EFCC.
- That our client is a responsible family man and has since resumed his normal business activity.
We are therefore using this medium to call on well meaning Nigerians and the general public to vehemently disregard as false, the publication made by EFCC and any other media that carried same publication against our client.
NICHOLAS C. OCHE, ESQ
FOR: CRADLE OF LAW
