EFCC Can’t Declare Anyone Wanted, says Court

Invalidates EFCC’s Declaration of Aiteo Boss as Fugitive

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has been bereft of powers to declare any person wanted without securing the leave of a court of competent jurisdiction.

An Abuja High Court sitting at Bwari has said in a judgment that was delivered by Justice Othman Musa recently.

The Court went ahead to quash and invalidated the declaration of the Chairman of Aiteo Group, Mr. Benedict Peters, as a wanted man, by the EFCC.

Justice Musa held that a fundamental right enforcement suit the applicant filed before the court was well founded, saying EFCC’s declaration that he was wanted deserved to be set-aside since it was made without recourse to the rule of law.

The court faulted the anti-graft agency for publishing on its website that Mr. Peters was a wanted fugitive, when it had yet to secure a court order to that effect.

He said the action of the agency was in gross violation of sections 34, 35 and 36 of the 1999 constitution, as well as sections 41 and 42 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.

Nevertheless, the court said its decision did not amount to a blanket declaration that EFCC could not declare anyone wanted when it is armed with a valid court order after fulfilling all the condition precedents.

According to the court, “It is hereby declared that the act of declaring the Applicant wanted on the website of the 1st Respondent (EFCC) without firstly securing leave of court is unconstitutional, illegal, wrongful and same is hereby set-aside”

The Aiteo boss had through his lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, challenged the powers of EFCC to declare him wanted when he has not been charged with any criminal offence before any court or jumped bail.

It however declined to grant a prayer that sought to compel EFCC to tender an apology to the Applicant in two national dailies.

He insisted that EFCC grossly and arbitrarily violated his fundamental rights to personal liberty, freedom of movement and his right not to be subjected to any degrading treatment.

Aside EFCC, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, was cited as the 2nd Respondent in the suit marked FCT/HC/CV/23/2017.

The applicant told the court that EFCC had sometime in 2015, asked him to appear before it in respect of an investigation into how the former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Deiziani Allison-Madueke alleged used $115million to bribe officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, before the last general election.

Mr. Peters told the court that he was receiving medical treatment in France when the invitation letter was extended to him by the EFCC, and therefore wrote a letter requesting that the appointment be deferred till June 2, 2015.

However, he decried that before the appointed day, armed operatives of the agency invaded the premises of Aiteo and arrested the Managing Director and the Executive Director, without warrant.

He further told the court that on June 1, 2015, EFCC operatives equally stormed his residence in Lagos and arrested his driver. The Aiteo boss said he became suspicious of the motive behind the invitation and feared for his life, hence his decision to file the suit in July, 2015.

Meantime, though the court invalidated the declaration of the Applicant as a fugitive, it however declined to quash the said warrant of arrest that was issued against him by the Magistrate Court.