The Court of Appeal in Kano on Wednesday set aside judgment of a Kano Federal High Court that discharged and acquitted a Kano APC gubernatorial aspirant, Abdulsalam Sale Abdulkarim Zaura popularly known as AA Zaura.
Recall that Zaura was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on a five count charge before the Federal High Court in Kano.
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The Commission accused Zaura of defrauding a Kuwaiti national by obtaining the sum of $1,320,000 (One Million Three Hundred and Twenty Thousand Dollars) under the pretext that he was in the business of building properties in Dubai, Kuwait and other Arab countries.
On the 9th June 2020, Justice Lewis Allagoa found the defendant not guilty and discharged him on all counts.
However, dissatisfied with the judgment of the lower court, counsel representing the prosecution, Musa Isah took the matter to court of appeal in a bid to overturn the judgment of the lower court.
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In a unanimous decision by three man panel judges of the court of appeal and delivered by Justice Abdullahi M. Bayero, the judgment of the Federal High Court was set aside.
Bayero also ordered that the defendant be tried afresh by a different judge other than Justice Allagoa.
The main point of contention in the appeal was that the accused person was absent when the judgment was delivered and based on several judgments of the Supreme Court, it was held that an accused person must always be present in court throughout his trial including judgment.
It was in that regard that the court of appeal found merit in the appeal and upheld the same accordingly.
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“Having determined the issue in favor of the appellant, the appeal naturally succeeds. The judgment of the lower court in suit number FHCK/CR2018/ FRN against Abdulsalam Sale Abdulkarim delivered on June 9th, 2020 is hereby set aside.”
Bayero further ordered that the case be reverted back to the Federal High Court and begin afresh.
