N2 Billion Fraud: Court Denies Maina Fresh Bail

The Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday, refused to grant fresh bail to the former Chairman of the defunct Pension Reformed Taskforce Team (PRTT), Abdulrasheed Maina.

Ruling on the matter, the judge, Okon Abang, said Mr Maina, who jumped bail last year, “has disappointed the court,” the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

He said the defendant, who is being prosecuted for laundering N2billion in pension funds, failed to place sufficient materials before the court to support his fresh application for bail.

Dismissing the application, the judge held that the application lacked merit.

Mr Maina, earlier granted bail by the judge, evaded trial and fled to the Republic of Niger last year.

The defendant, whose escape landed his surety, Ali Ndume, a serving senator, in jail for few days, was later apprehended after the court issued a warrant for his arrest.

Mr Maina was brought back to court on December 4, 2020, even though the judge had ensured his trial continued in his absence.

He had barely spent three weeks in remand when he filed another bail application on December 24, asking for fresh bail, anchored on his alleged deteriorating health.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the anti-corruption agency prosecuting him before Mr Abang, had opposed the fresh bail application, insisting that the man was not deserving of a second chance.