A Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja has granted permission to the former Managing Director of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Ahmed Kuru, to travel abroad for urgent medical treatment.
Justice Mojisola Dada, in a ruling, ordered the release of Kuru’s international passport to facilitate his trip to the UK.
The decision followed an ex parte application filed by Kuru’s counsel, Oyinkan Badejo-Okusanya, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
Badejo-Okusanya told the court that the request was due to the “extreme urgency” of his medical needs.
Counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Wahab Shittu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, did not object to the application.
However, he expressed concern over intelligence reports allegedly linking the first and third defendants—Kamilu Omokide and Captain Roy Ilegbodu—to plans to sell aircraft connected to Arik Air, which is central to the ongoing fraud trial.
Shittu wondered whether the medical trip might serve as a pretext to facilitate the sale of those assets, some of which are reportedly located in France.
He therefore urged the court to rule on the application based on its merit while maintaining the status quo regarding the aircraft.
In response, Badejo-Okusanya argued that the EFCC’s concerns do not pertain to her client, who plans to travel to the UK, not France.
Similarly, counsel to Union Bank, Olalekan Ojo, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, dismissed the EFCC’s claim as speculative, stressing that his client is a reputable financial institution not involved in any unethical activity.
Justice Dada, after listening to all submissions, acknowledged the EFCC’s concerns but declined to issue any restraining orders on the assets, citing the absence of any documentary evidence before the court to justify such action.
Kuru faces charges alongside Captain Roy Ilegbodu, Managing Director of Arik Air; Kamilu Omokide, Arik Air’s Receiver Manager; Union Bank Nigeria Plc; and Super Bravo Limited.
The EFCC had arraigned the five defendants in January on a six-count charge bordering on conspiracy, theft, abuse of office, and fraud involving N76bn and $31.5m, allegedly syphoned from Arik Air.
While Union Bank faces one count of making false statements to a public officer, the other defendants are charged with offences ranging from stealing to unlawfully transferring funds and destroying critical airline infrastructure.
They all pleaded not guilty and were granted bail of N20m each, with one surety-like sum.
The court also ordered them to deposit their international passports with the court registrar.
According to the EFCC, the offences violated Sections 73, 96, 278(1), and 278(6) of the Lagos State Criminal Law of 2015. Among the allegations is the claim that Union Bank misrepresented Arik Air’s loan performance to AMCON in 2011, which led to the sale of its loans and the transfer of N71bn.
The Commission also alleged that Kuru and others, in 2022, illegally diverted N4.9bn to NG Eagle Ltd, fraudulently transferred N22.5m to one Magashi Ali Mohammed, and deliberately dismantled a Boeing aircraft worth $31.5m, thereby undermining Nigeria’s economic interests.
