LAGOS, Federal Republic of Nigeria. Officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Wednesday, arrested Albert Okumagba, the Group Managing Director of embattled investment banking group, BGL Plc, a day before a Federal High Court in Lagos turned down his bid to restrain the anti-graft agency from arresting him.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had in May suspended BGL and its subsidiaries, just as it barred Okumagba from performing the functions of a stockbroker over allegations of fraud, bothering on suspicious transactions observed in the course of the investigation by members of the Interim Management Board it set up, which were referred to the EFCC for further investigation.
The SEC had subsequently constituted an interim management led by Oladipo Aina, a former President of the CIS like Okumagba. Other members are Abubakar Ambursa, Mrs. Hafsat Rufai, Ms. Temitayo Siyanbola and Ms. Tonne Ladipo-Ajayi.
The dispute had resulted in plethora of court cases and orders ranging from the one which restrained SEC from going ahead with the hearing of a petition before its Administrative Proceedings Committee (APC) against the BGL Group.
There was an order, for instance, which restrained SEC from implementing a directive announcing the suspension of BGL Plc and its subsidiaries from all capital market activities.
Apart from the move by the EFCC to investigate the matter, SEC was said to have received over 50 petitions against BGL and its subsidiaries complaining of massive capital market infractions.
At a point, the upper legislative chamber had intervened in the matter, and directed SEC to investigate the petitions against BGL.
Okumagba had sought to restrain the anti-graft agency from inviting, questioning or arresting the directors of BGL and possibly prosecuting them over alleged capital market infractions.
The extant petition upon which Okumagba and his companies were being wanted resulted from an application filed by the Rivers State Ministry of Finance and 31 others against BGL and others, involving a total of about N11billion of public fund.
When the matter came up on Thursday before Justice Mohammed Yunusa, the judge declined to grant the ex-parte application.
SEC, it was gathered, had petitioned the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, complaining about the orders made by some judges of the court, which handicapped the commission from commencing proceedings on the petition against the BGL Group.
Specifically, the petition to the Chief Judge was written against Justice Saliu Saidu, Justice Mohammed Idris and the incumbent judge handling the matter, Justice Mohammed Yunusa.
Also on Wednesday, a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos adjourned a bankruptcy suit against Okumagba by First Bank of Nigeria Limited over a N1.407 billion debt until October 14, 2015.
The suit followed a judgement of the court delivered on September 26, 2014, by Justice Mohammed Idris in suit FHC/CS/953/2012.
According to a petition accompanying a bankruptcy note filed before the court by Dr Joseph Nwobike (SAN) on behalf First Bank, since the judgment was delivered, Okumagba and BGL have failed to pay the judgment sum.
The defendants had appealed against the judgment and filed an application for stay of execution of the judgment, which was not granted, as the court ordered the debtor to pay the judgment sum into an interest yielding account in the name of the Chief Registrar of the court within 15 days from October 31, 2014.
Credit: Daily Independent (Nigeria)
