Court Orders Arrest Of APGA Factional Leader For Forging A Supreme Court Judgement

A High Court in Bwari in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has issued a bench warrant for the arrest of a factional leader of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Edozie Njoku over alleged complicity in the forgery of a Supreme Court judgement.

Naija News reports that Justice Mohammed Magudu issued the arrest order of Njoku and one other person in a ruling on Monday when Njoku and his co-defendant, Chukwuemeka Nwoga failed to show up for the court hearing as earlier planned.

Njoku and Nwoga were dragged to court by the Inspector General Police (IGP) and were arraigned on a 14-count charge.

The defendants were alleged to have written Justices Mary Odili, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, Mohammed Garba and Ibrahim Saulawa (who were members of the panel that delivered the judgment) to help insert Njoku’s name as the second respondent.

Njoku and his co-defendant were alleged to have procured the services of some officials of the court who helped to insert Njoku’s name on the judgment, which Njoku allegedly presented to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the IGP, claiming to have been declared APGA’s National Chairman by the Supreme Court.

Their failure to show up in court today followed Justice Magudu’s order for both Njoku and Nwogu to be apprehended by the police and produced in court on November 28 for the purpose of their arraignment.

The ruling was on an oral application by the prosecuting lawyer, Rimamsomte Ezekiel, who urged the court to order the production of the defendants, who he claimed was served with the charge and informed about the day’s proceedings, but chose to stay away.

However, Naija News learnt that Njoku’s lawyer Panam Ntui challenged the mode of service of the charge on his client and prayed the court to reschedule the arraignment to enable his client, who travelled outside Abuja to return.

The lawyer to the nominal complainant, Stephen Nwoga faulted Ntui’s claim that his client travelled outside Abuja, stating that Njoku addressed a press conference in Abuja on Thursday.

On this premise, Justice Magudu held in his ruling that it was obvious from the evidence before the court that the defendants ( Njoku and Nwogu) were duly served, but chose not to attend court.

Njoku and Nwoga are, in the charge marked: CR/12/2022 accused among others, of altering a judgment delivered by the Supreme Court on October 14, 2021, in the appeal marked: SC/CV/686/2021 and inserting Njoku’s name as the second defendant when he was never a party in the case.

Part of the charge reads: “That you Chief Edozue Njoku, Chukwuemeka Nwoga on or about 30th June 2022 in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, with others who are now at large, dishonestly and deliberately forged the judgement of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in suit No. SC/CV/686/2021 with the name of Chief Edozie Njoku as the second respondent, knowing that he was not a party to the case, using the same as a genuine judgment of the Supreme Court with the intent to mislead members of the public, and ridiculing the Judiciary of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, thereby committed an offence under Section 366 Penal Code Law.

“That you Chief Edozie Njoku, on or about 18th July 2022 at about 12 pm in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja and others who are now at large dishonestly and with intent to commit a criminal offence, fabricated a letter to the Inspector-General of Police under the false pretence that, you are the National Chairman of All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) an act which you know to be false and criminal, thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 178 of the Penal Code Law.

“That you Chief Edozie Njoku on about 18th July 2022 at about 10:30 am in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja with others, who are now at large, dishonestly forged the letter headed paper of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), in that, you wrote to the Inspector General of Police as the National Chairman of the APGA, thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 366 of the Panel Code law.”