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The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to four staff members of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) implicated in an alleged fraud scheme involving over N1 billion in project supervision funds.
The court approved bail for three of the defendants, Umar Musa Karaye, Emmanuel Titus, and Henrrietta Okojie, at N50 million each. They are required to provide two sureties, one of whom must own landed property in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The fourth defendant, Abubakar Abdullahi Sambo, was granted bail separately at N200 million.
The case, prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), accuses Karaye of diverting N165 million, Titus of N261 million fraud, and Okojie of embezzling N342 million. Sambo is alleged to have made unauthorized payments totaling N1.835 billion.
The charges against the defendants include receiving various sums through their bank accounts under the pretense of project supervision for the REA, a federal agency under the Ministry of Power responsible for electrifying rural and underserved communities. They are accused of committing offenses contrary to Section 1(1)(a) and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006. This law prescribes up to seven years imprisonment for obtaining property by false pretenses with intent to defraud.
Additionally, the ICPC claims that the defendants’ actions have contributed to the economic adversity of the REA, violating Section 68 of the Public Enterprise Regulatory Commission Act, CAP. P39, Laws of the Federation, 2004.
The defendants pleaded not guilty to all charges. Justice Emeka Nwite, ruling on the bail applications, granted bail to Karaye, Titus, and Okojie, while Justice Mobolaji Olajuwon granted bail to Sambo and set his trial for October 17, 2024. The trial for the other defendants is scheduled for July 10, 2024.
The investigation into the REA began in 2023 following allegations of fraud, criminal conspiracy, and public fund diversion, initiated by a petition from the Centre Against Injustice and Domestic Violence (CAIDOV). President Bola Tinubu had earlier approved the suspension of REA’s Managing Director/CEO, Ahmad Salihijo Ahmad, and three Executive Directors, amid the ongoing investigations.
The defendants, Karaye, Titus, Okojie, and Sambo, maintain their innocence until proven guilty in court.
