Justice Akintayo Aluko of a Federal High Court, Lagos, has adjourned to January 27, 2026, additional listening to of the prison cost filed towards a Briton, two Indian nationals, and their firms for allegedly defrauding Ecobank Nigeria Limited of the sum of $42.48 million.
The Briton and the Indian nationals alleged to have defrauded the {bank} are Marcus Wade, Chairman of Wilben Trade Limited; Prem Garg and Devashish Garg. They had been alleged to have defrauded the {bank} in 2015 below the false pretence of utilizing the funds to import rice into Nigeria.
The defendants are being prosecuted alongside their firms, Wilben Trade Limited, Dubai, and Agrico Agbe Limited, by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), below the Federal Ministry of Justice.
However, the courtroom mounted the brand new date following the absence of the prosecutor and the three defendants yesterday on the resumed listening to of the matter.
When the case was referred to as, Mr A. A. Akinteye, who appeared for the defendants, knowledgeable the courtroom that the prosecutor had requested him to request an adjournment since he was dealing with one other matter on the Court of Appeal and couldn’t be current in courtroom. He due to this fact urged the courtroom to grant one other date for listening to.
Meanwhile, in relation to earlier freezing orders positioned on the defendants’ accounts, two legal professionals, Ademola Abayomi and Victor Adunwa, representing Zenith Bank, GTBank, and Citibank, knowledgeable the courtroom that neither the defendants nor their firms maintained any accounts with the listed banks.
Following their submissions, the courtroom adjourned the case to January 27, 2026, for additional listening to.
Also, the prosecution alleged that the defendants someday in May and September 2015, at Ecobank Plc, Lagos, conspired amongst themselves to commit an offence to wit: dishonest, in that they prompted Ecobank Plc to launch the sum of $42,485,900 supposed below contract for the acquisition and importation into Nigeria of Indian parboiled rice, however didn’t utilise the funds for the said goal.
Their offence is punishable below Sections 421 and 422 of the Criminal Code Act, Cap C38, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Part of the cost within the go well with marked FHC/L/562C/2022 reads, “That you, Prem Garg, Devashish Garg, both of Indian nationality; Agrico Agbe Limited (a company registered in Nigeria); Wilben Trade Limited, Dubai (a company registered in the United Arab Emirates, Dubai); and Marcus Wade (Chairman of Wilben Trade Ltd, Dubai), of British nationality, sometime in the months of May and September 2015, at Ecobank Plc, Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, conspired among yourselves to commit an offence, and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 422 of the Criminal Code Act, Cap C38, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.”
However, regardless of the pending prices, the defendants have repeatedly failed to seem earlier than the courtroom to take their pleas.
