Twist in Stella Oduah’s forgery case as court orders probe of prosecutor

Our reporter/ A new twist emerged in the alleged forgery trial of Senator Stella Oduah by the federal government as Justice James Omotoso of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday ordered an investigation of the Prosecution Counsel, Ibrahim Mohammed, who filed an eight-count charge.

The court is inquiring how the charge sheet which was filed in June by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is being prosecuted by the police.

The controversy began when the matter was called and the counsel, Mohammed, announced his appearance for the Nigeria Police Force.

He told the court that the defendant, Stella Oduah, was not in court because the Investigating Police Officer (IPO) said she could not be served because she was indisposed.

The judge went further to inquire about who signed the charge, which the prosecutor affirmed.

Justice Omotosho further probed if he was a police officer, and he answered in the affirmative. He said he was seconded to the EFCC but had been deployed back to the Police Force in November 2022.

He added that he resumed at the Legal Department of the Police Headquarters in January 2023.

The court further inquired how the charge was filed in June 2023 by the EFCC, but is being prosecuted by the police.

The judge asked if a reasonable man would believe his explanations. He further added that the Prosecution Counsel will be taken to the anti-graft agency to explain himself.

He subsequently called for the investigation of the counsel.

In a brief ruling, Justice Omotoso ordered the EFCC to investigate the Prosecution Counsel and revert to the court. The court also ordered the counsel, Ibrahim Mohammed, to report to the EFCC immediately.

Oduah was expected to be arraigned before the court on an eight-count charge bordering on alleged complicity surrounding her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate and allegedly receiving money fraudulently from the Federal Government.

The case has been adjourned till July 18 for the EFCC to report to the court, on its investigation.

The Federal Government filed an eight-count charge against former Minister of Aviation Stella Oduah at a Federal High Court in Abuja on June 26, 2023, according to court documents made available to media outlets on Monday.