Malami Ordered To Unfreeze Account Of FUNAAB Ex-bursar

A Federal High Court sitting in Abeokuta has ordered Abubakar Malami, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, to unfreeze the account of a former bursar of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Moses Ilesanmi.
Ilesanmi  had approached  the Federal High Court  over continued freezing of his bank account and withholding of his passport by  the office of the Attorney General of the Federation, having been discharged and acquitted of crimes bordering on alleged stealing, abuse of office and fraudulent conversion of FUNAAB property.
The trio of former Minister of Works and former Pro-Chancellor, FUNAAB, Adeseye Ogunlewe, former Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olusola Oyewole,  and ex-bursar of the FUNAAB, Ilesanmi  had earlier been arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission  on 18 counts, including stealing, abuse of office and fraudulent conversion of the university property.
Justice Olatokunbo Majekodunmi of the Ogun State High Court sitting in Abeokuta had quashed the charge against Ogunlewe, Olusola and Ilesanmi in May 2018.
Majekodunmi  after  discharging   and acquitting   the accused, ordered the  EFCC and the Federal Government to release all the property of the defendants  in their custody.
But the office of the Attorney General of the Federation froze the bank account of Ilesanmi and directed that his passport be seized by the Nigeria Immigration Service  after he had been acquitted.
Ilesanmi approached the Federal High Court, urging the court to  compel the Attorney General to release his  passport and unfreeze his bank account.
Ilasanmi through his counsel, Adedamola Dire-Arimoro, complained that failure to obey the court order would amount to the Attorney General of the Federation being guilty of contempt of court.
Justice Ibrahim Watila of the Federal High Court, while  granting  the ex parte order, restrained Malami from withholding Ilesanmi’s passport.
The ex parte order  reads, “That the respondent be and is hereby directed to remove and/or delete the name of the applicant listed as number 104 in the First Schedule of the Presidential Executive Order No 6 of 2018.
“That the Respondent is mandated and directed to vacate, unfreeze and/or remove the Post-No-Debt Order placed on the applicant’s bank account.
“That there shall be cost of N50,000 in favour of the applicant.”