July 07, (THEWILL) – The Supreme Court has set aside the Court of Appeal judgement, which convicted Senator Peter Nwaoboshi for fraud and money laundering offences.
A five-member Justices of the apex court, in a split decision of four-to-one, on Friday, ordered his immediate release from Ikoyi prisons, in Lagos, where he is currently serving a seven-year jail term.
The court also freed the two companies, Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd and Suiming Electrical Ltd, tried with him on a two-count charge brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The anti-graft agency had accused Nwaoboshi and his companies of illegally acquiring a property of the Delta State Govt, Guinea House, on Marine Road, in Apapa, Lagos, for N805 million.
It claimed that part of the money paid for the property was transferred by Suiming Electrical Ltd on behalf of Nwaoboshi and Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd, adding the funds are believed to be proceeds of their illicit activities.
While Nwaoboshi was earlier acquited at a Federal High Court in Lagos, he was, however, convicted and sentenced to seven years imprisonment on July 1, 2022, by the Court of Appeal in Lagos.
In a lead judgement by Justice Emmanuel Agim, the apex court held that Nwaobishi and the two companies were unjustly and maliciously prosecuted by the EFCC for committing no offences known to law.
