Akingbola: Fate of trial still unknown

The fate of the former Managing Director of Intercontinental Bank Plc (now Access Bank), Dr Erastus Akingbola, is still unknown in the theft charge levelled against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja as his case file was yet to be re-assigned to another judge or technically resolved.
Dr Akingbola was in court on Thursday as scheduled for his trial in his black Mercedez Benz jeep, but he was told that his trial could not go on as his case file was yet to be transferred to another judge.
Dr Akingbola’s case file is said to still be in the safe custody of the registrar of the court where the matter is being tried though the judge has ceased to have jurisdictional competence to continue to sit over the highly celebrated case, following his elevation to the Court of Appeal.
Human Rights lawyer, Mr Femi Falana(SAN), while speaking on the matter, said that the  implication of the new appointment given Justice Abiru, was that Akingbola’s case had been technically resolved in his favour.
“In other words, Mr Akingbola has  been discharged a second time due to no fault of his” said Falana in apparent reference to his discharge in another case at the Federal High Court for what the trial judge, Justice Justice Clement Archbong, blamed on “lack of diligent prosecution.”
At the last sitting of the court on October 22, justice Abiru had ordered Akingbola to close his defence and to file his final address within 14 days of the sitting of the court.
Justice Abiru had then adjourned the trial which had lasted about 18 months for Thursday to announce the date for judgment in the matter.
But on Monday November 5, Justice Abiru was sworn in as a Justice of the Appeal court, thereby losing jusrisdiction to deliver judgement in the trial of Akingbola again.