Malabu: FG Arraigns HEDA Chair, Suraju

The chairman of the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) Olanrewaju Suraju was on Friday arraigned before a Federal High Court in Abuja.

Suraju was arraigned on a two-count charge filed by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) in which he was accused of cyber-stalking a former AGF, Mohammed Adoke.

Salihu Bagudu, from the Federal Ministry of Justice, represented the prosecution while Muiz Banire (SAN) represented the defendant.

When the charge was read on Friday, Suraju pleaded not guilty, following which his lawyer applied for bail.

Justice Binta Nyako granted him bail and adjourned till May 10 for the commencement of trial.

Adoke had, in a petition to the police, accused the HEDA boss of peddling falsehood against him in respect of the Malabu Oil scam.

He had, in the petition, demanded a probe of email evidence presented against him by prosecutors in the Malabu trial in Milan, Italy, admitting that the Malabu transaction was a scam.

In count one of the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/370/2021, Suraju is accused of intentionally circulating an audio telephone interview between one Ms. Carlamaria Rumur, a reporter with RIAReporter in Italy and Mohammed Adoke via his twitter handle @HEDAagenda, which he knew to be false, for the purpose of causing insult to Adoke and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 24 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention ETC) Act 2015 and punishable under the same section of the Act.

In count two, the defendant is accused of committing the same offence in count one via the Facebook handle @HEDAResourcecentre.