*Justice Akpan Okon Ebong of the FCT High Court, in Abuja, Nigeria, again, strikes out the case Femi Falana, SAN, filed against Leo Stan Ekeh, Chairman of Zinox Technologies, Chioma Ekeh, his wife, and 11 others

Isola Moses | 绿帽献妻

The Nigerian court again, has thrown out a fraud case, which Mr. Femi Falana, SAN, had filed against Dr. Leo Stan Ekeh, Chairman of Zinox Technologies, Chioma Ekeh, his wife, and 11 others.

The latest is the dismissal of the suit by Justice Akpan Okon Ebong of the FCT High Court, who dismissed the case filed by Falana SAN, purporting to act on a fiat donated to him by Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, Attorney-General and Honourable Minister for Justice, Federal Republic of Nigeria, against Ekeh Chairman of Zinox Technologies, and 12 others.

The other defendants are Mr. Chris Eze Ozims, Oyebode Folashade, Charles Adigwe, Obilo Onuoha, Agartha Ukoha, Anya O. Anya, Femi Dosumu, Nnenna Kalu, Admas Digital Technologies Limited, Technology Distributions Limited and Zinox Technologies Limited.

In the suit No. FCT/HC/CR/985/24 filed in November 2024, Falana on behalf of his client, Benjamin Joseph, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Citadel Oracle Concept Limited, an Ibadan-based computer firm, filed charges against Ekeh, nine other individuals and three companies before the Federal High Court, in Abuja, FCT, for allegedly diverting N162,247,513.80 being payment for laptop supply contract at the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Headquarters, which Technology Distribution Limited (now TD Africa), the biggest tech equipment distributor in Sub Saharan Africa, had supplied on behalf of Citadel 2012.

However, in the Certified True Copy of the judgment dated March 20, 2025, Justice Ebong ruled as follows: 鈥淚t is my conclusion, based on the foregoing that this charge (No. FCT/HC/CR/985/2024, Federal Republic of Nigeria v Leo Stan Ekeh and 12 ORS) constitutes a gross abuse of court process and is liable to dismissal. I accordingly hereby dismiss it.鈥�

Prior to the court judgment, which has put a final nail in the coffin of a case that other courts had dismissed in the past as dead on arrival, Justice Ebong had considered the outcome of previous cases and petitions filed by Mr. Joseph of which none was in his favour.

Justice Ebong also said:聽鈥淥ne intriguing aspect of this matter is that none of the law enforcement agencies involved in the investigation of the nominal complainant鈥檚 (Mr. Joseph) numerous petitions has found merit in any of his allegations against the defendants. When called upon before Senchi J. (Justice Danlami Z. Senchi) to prove his said allegations to the court, he failed to turn up in court.

One then wonders on what premise he wants to maintain this campaign of persecution against the defendants.鈥�

Previous judgments on the matter had established that rather than being the culprit, Ekeh and the 12 others were actually the victims of a failed money diversion scheme plotted by Mr. Joseph and Citadel.

When contacted, one of the defendants, Mr. Chris Eze Ozims, a lawyer, said: “This ruling truly reflects our consistent position on the allegations, and it is good that we have been vindicated, once more, by a competent high court.

He asserted that the judgment of Justice Ebong was consistent with the position of the defendants and in tandem with the ruling of other Judges, who had earlier adjudicated on the same matter in the past.

Mr. Matthew Burkaa SAN, chief counsel to the defendants, described the judgment as a victory for integrity and the rule of law.

Court papers showed that Falana鈥檚 suit was based on the same claims, which various courts had in the past dismissed as falsehood and baseless.

The case arose from a contract between Citadel and Technology Distributions Limited over the supply of computers to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), a project fully funded by Technology Distributions, and has no bearing whatsoever with Zinox and its promoter, Dr. Leo Stan Ekeh.

It is recalled that Mr. Joseph had lost the case and its adjunct suits in different courts in the past.

In his petition to the Nigeria Police 2013, the Police authorities discovered that Mr. Joseph provided false information to them, prompting the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to charge him for false information in Charge No.CR/216/16.

In another case filed by the EFCC at his instance against his partner, Princess Kama, in Charge No. FCT/HC/CR/244/2018,聽Honourable Justice Danlami Z. Senchi of the FCT High Court (as he then was), dismissed as false all the allegations made by Benjamin Joseph, and imposed the sum of N20 million as damages against him for false petitioning in relation to these same allegations.

Earlier court papers indicated that Joseph, in his statement on oath in Suit No:LD/4335/2014 in the High Court of Justice, Lagos State, dated 28 June, 2019, has averred聽聽that his company, Citadel, did not execute any contract with FIRS and that he was not aware that a contract was awarded to Citadel.

In his deposition under oath, Joseph claimed that Citadel 鈥渄id not at any time execute any contract for the FIRS and neither did the 2nd defendant (Princess O. Kama) who is its agent in respect of the contract it bade for with the FIRS deliver/release any documents to the Claimant (Citadel) indicating that the contract it bade for, or any other contract was awarded to it by the FIRS or any other body.鈥�

However, a letter from the FIRS addressed to the chamber of Afe Babalola & Co dated 11 February, 2014 (FIRS/PD/GDS/2559), and signed by certain Idrissa Kogo, Head Legal Department, stated:聽鈥淐ontrary to your client鈥檚 claim that they knew nothing about the execution of the contract awarded to them and that they did not receive any payment for the execution of the contract, our record reveals otherwise.

鈥淵our client instructed FIRS through a letter dated 13th December, 2012, to deal with Princess O. Kama (Your client鈥檚 agent) in relation to the contract. Through three separate letters dated 20th December 2012, your client instructed FIRS to pay to the client鈥檚 account with Access Bank plc. Please note that FIRS acted in compliance with your client鈥檚 instruction and with due diligence,鈥澛爐he FIRS letter stated.

The FIRS letter was a response to inquiry by Afe Babalola Chamber, lawyers to Citadel Oracle Concept Limited and its Managing Director, Mr. Joseph, at that time.

The current charges filed by Falana on the basis of a fiat from the Attorney General make the third in a row as Mr. Joseph had earlier filed Charge No.CR/469/2022, which was struck out by Honourable Justice C. O. Oba of the FCT High Court, by an order dated 8th November, 2022.

Determined to push through his case, Mr Joseph聽also filed the same charges before Honourable Justice A. S. Adepoju of the FCT High Court, and the charges were, once聽again, struck out by the Honourable Court on 19th March, 2024, with Honourable Justice Adepoju holding that:聽鈥淭his matter was brought in dead, extinct and should be confined into the dustbin of history鈥�.

“I hold that the instant suit is an abuse of the process of court and it is hereby struck out accordingly.鈥�

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