Court turns down lawyer’s plea, orders arrest of ex-Customs boss, Dikko

The Federal High Court, Abuja, on Monday, ordered the arrest of Abdullahi Dikko, former Comptroller General (CG) of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) over his continued failure to appear in court in an alleged corruption and bribery trial.

Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu, who issued the arrest warrant at the sitting, refused to accept his lawyer’s explanation that the defendant was ill and on admission in London.

Our correspondent reports that Dikko and two others are being charged by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) before the court on corruption allegation.

Dikko’s lawyer, Solomon Akuma, SAN, who had previously undertaken to produce him in court, only presented a medical report before the court, in a bid to justify his absence from court on Monday.

The judge said the medical report bearing the address, N6 Ahmed Musa Crescent, Jabi, Abuja, contradicted Akuma’s claim that the defendant was on admission in London.

She, therefore, ordered the prosecution to arrest and produce Dikko in court at the next sitting on March 16, 2020.

The judge, however, added that if the prosecution, in its bid to execute the arrest warrant, discovered that the defendant was on admission in London, the arrest warrant would be set aside.
She adjourned the matter till March 16 for arraignment.

It was reported that the ICPC had, in 2019, charged Dikko and two others with inducing the Managing Director of Cambial Limited, Yemi Obadeyi, to pay the sum of N1,100, 952,380.96 into the account of Capital Law Office.

The fund was described as a refundable “completion security deposit” for the purchase of 120 units of duplexes as residential accommodation for officers of the NCS.

Dikko, a former Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of Finance, Administration and Technical Services, Garba Makarfi and a lawyer and promoter of Capital Law firm, Umar Hussaini, are the co-defendants in the criminal case.