N5.7bn Pension scam: Court dismiss application for bail variation

By SundiataPOST, Abuja

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday dismissed an application filed by  Sani Teidi, seeking for the variation of his bail conditions.

Teidi, a former Director, Pension Acounts, in the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, was facing trial over the missing N5.7 billion pension funds. The judge, Justice Adeniyi Ademola, in his ruling on bail variation, held that the allegations against the applicant were weighty. “The court is not disposed to reducing the conditions earlier given; I consider them appropriate in view of the nature of the case. The application is dismissed,’’ he said.

Chief Sunday Ameh (SAN), Counsel to Teidi, had urged the court to reduce the initial bail terms of N500 million and two sureties, respectively to N100 million and a surety.

He had told the court that it was evident that his client could not perfect the bail as a result of the stringent terms.

Ameh said a situation where the accused person had continued to remain in prison five months after he was granted bail negated justice.

The judge, had on June 19, granted bail to Teidi and Udusegbe Eric, the second accused person, in the sum of N500 million with two sureties in like sum.

Similarly, Ademola dismissed Eric’s application for bail variation on same conditions with Teidi’s.
The judge adjourned the case to Jan. 29, 2014, for the continuation of trial.

In a related development, the court equally dismissed similar applications filed by Aliyu Bello and Abdullahi Omeza.

Bello and Omeza, who were facing trial for allegedly defrauding the Federal Pension Account, had urged the court to review the N350 million and two sureties fixed as conditions for perfecting their bails.

Ademola adjourned the case to Jan. 28.