Col. Nicholas Ashinze, a former Special Assistant to the immediate past National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), and three others have been arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday, on 13 counts of money laundering involving N36.8billion.

Ashinze was arraigned alongside an Austrian, Wolfgang Reinl, Edidiong Idiong,  Sagir Mohammed and five companies before a Federal High Court in Abuja. The accused companies are Geonel Integrated Services Limited, Unity Continental Nigeria Limited, Helpline Organisation, Vibrant Resource Limited and Sologic Integrated Services Limited.

Ashinze and the other accused persons were accused of diverting huge sums of money from the office of the former NSA. The accused persons pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to them when they appeared before Justice Gabriel Kolawole on Wednesday.

After the arraignment, EFCC’s prosecuting counsel, Mr. I. O. Uket, said his witnesses were in court and he was ready for trial to commence immediately. But Ashinze’s counsel, Ernest Nwoye, informed the court of his client’s pending bail application.

While moving the application, Nwoye urged the court to grant his client bail on personal recognition having earlier been released on bail by a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory.

The counsel representing the second and fifth defendants, Mr. Afam Osigwe, also urged the court to grant his clients bail. The third defendant’s counsel, Paul Erokoro (SAN), also said his client, Idiong, being a legal practitioner would not jump bail. Also, the counsel representing the fourth defendant, N. Jimoh, said his client had a health challenge which he had been managing for close to 40 years.

Responding the appeal made by the defendants, Uket argued that the defendants had lost their administrative bail the moment their matter was charged to court and their counsel filed applications for their bail.

In his ruling on the applications, Justice Kolawole granted bail to the accused persons, saying that with the charges instituted against them, they could be bailed.

He added, “Since each of the defendants has been on one administrative bail or the other, my sixth judicial sense informs me that I adopt the terms and conditions of the bail granted to the defendants by the EFCC and my learned brothers in the FCT High Courts.”

The judge however noted that the case would be given accelerated hearing.