A Federal High Court in Abuja has rejected a no-case request by Nicholas Mutu, a House of Representatives member being tried alongside two others on money laundering accusations.
Mutu (who represents the Bomadi/Patani Federal Constituency in Delta State) is accused of laundering over N320 million along with two other companies, Airworld Technologies Ltd and Oyien Homes Ltd.
In a ruling issued on Monday, Justice Folashade Giwa-Ogunbanjo ordered Mutu and his co-defendants to enter their defence because they had a case to answer about the charges made against them in the 13-count amended charge on which they are being prosecuted.
Justice Giwa-Ogunbanjo ruled that the prosecution presented enough evidence to build a prima facie case against the three defendants, necessitating their appearance in court.
Mutu, the longest-serving member of the House of Representatives, was accused of committing the alleged offenses between August 2014 and August 2016, while serving as Chairman of the House of Representatives’ Committee on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
Details will be provided shortly.