The arraignment of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Mike Ozekhome, over alleged felony and forgery has been scheduled for Monday at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
Ozekhome is facing criminal charges arising from an alleged forgery linked to a controversial United Kingdom property traced to a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, late General Jeremiah Useni.
The High Court of Justice of the FCT on Wednesday formally notified the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) that the matter, FRN v. Chief Mike Ozekhome, has been fixed for hearing in Court 4.
Sources disclosed that Ozekhome may either be taken into custody ahead of the proceedings or directed to report to court early on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has reportedly submitted additional evidence relating to alleged passport forgery to the ICPC, a development that could see the number of charges against the senior lawyer increase from three to as many as eight.
The ICPC has insisted it is legally empowered to prosecute Ozekhome, citing Section 13 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
According to the court notice, parties are expected to be ready to proceed with the hearing on Monday, “if the business of the court permits,” or on any adjourned date without further notice.
“The parties are warned that at the hearing, they are required to bring forward all the evidence by witnesses or by documents which each of them desires to rely on in support of his own case or in contradiction of that of his opponent,” the notice stated.
Addressing questions over its jurisdiction, a senior ICPC source said the commission has received several representations suggesting the case falls under the mandate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) since Ozekhome is not a public officer.
The source dismissed the argument as legally flawed.
“This assumption is based on ignorance of the law,” the source said. “We have full legal backing to prosecute Chief Ozekhome by virtue of Section 13 of the ICPC Act.”
According to the ICPC, Section 13 criminalises the fraudulent receipt of property obtained through felony or misdemeanour, whether committed within or outside Nigeria, provided the recipient knew the property was illegally acquired.
“Forgery is a fundamental aspect of this case,” the source added. “It is a criminal offence and has nothing to do with whether one is a public officer or not. We will meet in court to defend our action.”
The ICPC further confirmed that fresh evidence received from the Nigeria Immigration Service could lead to an amendment of the charge sheet.
“We have just received more evidence on passport forgery from the NIS. The charges may increase from three to about eight,” the source said.
Describing the matter as one attracting international attention, the ICPC expressed confidence that the court proceedings would clarify all outstanding legal issues surrounding the case.