Court grants Ex-NIMASA DG, Akpobolokemi N20m Bail

           Justice Raliat Adebiyi of a Lagos High Court sitting in Igbosere has granted former Director General of  of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Patrick Akpobolokemi,  and four others bail of bail of N20 million each in a N754,740,680 alleged fraud case, pending court of Appeal judgment.




Akpobolokemi  on March 22 was arraigned by Economic and Financial Crimes Commissions on a 40-count charge bordering on money laundering and stealing before Justice I. N. Buba of the Federal High Court, Lagos.

One of the counts reads:

“That you, Patrick Akpobolokemi, Global West Vessel Specialist Ltd, between April 2013 and March 2014, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did commit an offence, to wit: Conversion of the sums of N1,064,670,641.67 (One Billion, Sixty-Four Million, Six Hundred and Seventy Thousand, Six Hundred and Forty-One Naira, Sixty Seven Kobo) and $51, 290, 213.44 (Fifty-One Million, Two Hundred and Ninety Thousand, Two Hundred and Thirteen Dollars, Forty-Four Cents), property of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, knowing that the said sums were proceeds of stealing, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 15(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act (Amended) 2012 and punishable under Section 15 (3) of the same Act