After a panel of three of the Appeal Court quashed the sentence convicting and jailing PDP former national publicity secretary Olisa Metuh said to be complicit in the $2 billion arms vote scandal, the EFCC has vowed to head for the Supreme Court.
The appeal panel led by Justice Stepehen Adah ordered a retrial of the case December 16, accusing the lower court Justice Abang of bias in the sentencing.
Metuh was prosecuted by the EFCC before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja on a seven-count charge of illegally receiving monies to the tune of N400million from the Office of the National Security Adviser, under Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd).
On February 25, Justice Abang convicted and sentenced him to seven years imprisonment.
Metah however approached the appellate court with an application to side aside the ruling of the lower court, alleging among others, that the trial Judge was biased and failed to accord him fair hearing.
Reviewing the ruling, the EFCC says it has decided to approach the Supreme Court to set aside the judgement of the Court of Appeal on the grounds that the appellate court erred by restricting itself to only two grounds ( 12 and 14) of the appeal that dwell on the alleged bias of the trial judge but failed to examine the merit of the judgement of Justice Abang.
“The anti-graft agency believes that the alleged remarks by the trial judge were not sufficient to nullify the judgment which was based on material evidence and submissions of witnesses called by the prosecution,” s statement by EFCC spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, said Saturday.
“The EFCC believes that, as an intermediate Court, the Court of Appeal erred in ordering a retrial without considering the merit of the judgement of the lower court.”
Metuh, serving his term at Kuje Prison, has not been released.