EFCC Loses Again As Court Grants Ex-Gov Turaki Bail

A Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to former governor of Jigawa State, Saminu Turaki, one week after he was arrested by personnel’s of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Mr. Turaki, who served two terms as governor of Jigawa from 1999 to 2007, was first arraigned by the EFCC before Justice Binta Murtala Nyako of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court on July 13, 2007 on a 32-count charge of misappropriating N36 billion while in office.

The former governor has being on the run for about four years following an arrest warrant issued by a Federal High Court in Dutse, the Jigawa State capital on May 3, 2013.

Despite the EFCC opposing the bail, the presideng judge, Justice Halilu ignored the anti-graft agency and granted Mr. Turaki bail.

“Justice Halilu admitted the accused to bail on conditions which require him to deposit his travel documents to the registry of the court, produce two sureties with reasonable source of income and as well as report to the Commission every two weeks from today, July 13, 2017 till when the court resumes from vacation in September, 2017,” the EFCC spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, said in a statement on Thursday.

“Once he meets the bail condition, we’ll release him,” he added.

It was gathered that the EFCC, who have repeatedly tried to arrest Mr. Turaki without success for four years, planned to keep the ex-governor in detention until September 17, the date the Jigawa federal judge adjourned his corruption trial to.