Justice Mohammed Yunusa of the Federal High Court, Kano on Thursday, November 10, 2022 adjourned till December 5, 2022 for arraignment and hearing of other applications by Abdulsalam Abdulkarim Zaura.

Zaura is due to be arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in line with the Court of Appeal, Kano Division’s ruling which quashed his acquittal of a $1.3million fraud charge in June 2020 by Justice A.l Allagoa of the Federal High Court.

In a unanimous decision, a three man panel of justices led by Justice Abdullahi M. Bayero said the lower court erred in acquitting the defendant and directed his retrial before another judge. But Zaura has so far failed to appear in court for arraignment on two previous occasions.

At the last adjourned date, Zaura’s counsel moved a motion urging the court not to entertain the matter pending the determination of his appeal at the Supreme Court.

The prosecution however objected, arguing that the motion could not be heard or argued in the absence of the defendant.

When the court resumed today, Justice Yunusa insisted that Zaura must be arraigned before any application can be heard.

He further ruled that it is the duty of the prosecution to produce the defendant for arraignment and adjourned till December 5.

The Commission is prosecuting Zaura for defrauding a Kuwaiti Citizen of the sum of $1,320,000 (One Million Three Hundred and Twenty Thousand Dollars) under the pretext that he is in the business of building properties in Dubai, Kuwait and other Arab countries.

Media & Publicity

10 November, 2022