Akindele Akintoye, the founder and chairman of Platform Capital Investment Partners Limited, was granted N500 million bail with two sureties in an equivalent amount by the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, on Wednesday.
In a verdict, Justice Emeka Nwite stated that he was attentive to give bail in the interest of justice, even though he was not unaware of the seriousness of the offense that was brought against the prisoner.
Mr. Nwite mandated that the two sureties must have landed property within the court’s jurisdiction and that the documents be deposited with the deputy registrar of the court. He further ordered that the sureties attest to an affidavit of means.
He mandated that all of his foreign passports be turned in to the registrar and that he not travel without the court’s approval. Additionally, he mandated that the court registrar confirm the sureties’ residence and that Mr. Akintoye and the sureties each submit two recent passport photos.
The matter was postponed until March 4 for trial by the judge, who mandated that the prosecution and defense attorneys oversee and question the prospective sureties prior to Mr. Akintoye’s release on bail.
After Mr. Esedo and Martha Babatunde, who represented the EFCC, presented their arguments for and against the bail application, Mr. Nwite scheduled a hearing for today, December 31, 2024.
When submitting the application, Mr. Esedo had asked if the defendant was eligible for bail. The attorney maintained that the court has the authority to decide bail matters in a prudent and judicial manner.
He said that Mr. Akinloye had fulfilled all the conditions necessary to be granted bail and that he would be presumed innocent until proven guilty. Mr. Esedo gave his word that the defendant was prepared to stand trial and would not violate bail.
In addition, he claimed that after holding him for 55 days, the anti-graft agency had already finished its investigation.
Ms. Babatunde objected to the bail request, claiming that the court was not required to grant release by Sections 158 and 162 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.
She maintained that the evidence against Mr. Akintoye was substantial because it touched on financial crime and major national economic sabotage, both of which are currently plaguing the nation. She described Mr. Akintoye as a flight risk and stated that he would not attend the trial if granted bail.
In the four-count accusation, Mr. Akintoye was accused of misappropriating $26,060,406 intended for the construction of a refinery in Brass, Bayelsa. The anti-graft agency filed a lawsuit against Mr. Akintoye, Platform Capital Investment Partners Limited, and Duport Midstream Company Limited, where he serves as managing director and CEO, respectively, as the first and third defendants.
The EFCC claimed that Mr. Akintoye and Platform Capital Investment Partners Limited had indirectly kept $16 million between December 2020 and February 2021 in the charge, designated FHC/ABJ/CR/641/V/2024, which was dated and submitted on December 19 by its attorney, Ekele Iheanacho.
According to the EFCC, the sum was a portion of money that was fraudulently taken from the investment that Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited received from the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board and Capacity Development Intervention Company Ltd.
It is claimed that the $16 million represents the proceeds of illegal activity.
According to the EFCC, the offense violates Section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 (as amended by Act No. 1 of 2012) and is penalized, among other things, under Section [5(3)] of the same Act.
