Court Frees Fayose Of Alleged N6.9bn Fraud Charges • EFCC Set To Appeal Ruling

A Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, discharged and acquitted former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, of all charges in the N6.9 billion fraud case brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Presiding judge, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke, upheld the no-case submission filed by Fayose’s legal team, ruling that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against the defendants.

Fayose and his company, Spotless Investment Limited, were re-arraigned on July 2, 2019, on an 11-count charge bordering on money laundering and theft. The case was originally instituted on October 22, 2018, before retired Justice Mojisola Olatoregun.

At the last hearing on May 19, 2025, Fayose’s lead counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, argued that the charges lacked substance. He pointed out that one of the alleged co-conspirators, Abiodun Agbele, who was central to the EFCC’s case, was never charged alongside the former governor.

“The predicate offences—criminal breach of trust and conspiracy—require a co-conspirator. None was docked with the defendant,” Agabi submitted.

Counsel to the second defendant, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, representing Spotless Investment Limited, also aligned with the no-case submission, urging the court to dismiss the charges outright.

In opposition, prosecuting counsel Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, maintained that the EFCC had presented sufficient evidence to require a defence from Fayose. He cited suspicious financial transactions, including testimonies and investigations which, according to him, linked the former governor to illicit fund movements.

Jacobs referenced the testimony of EFCC investigator Abubakar Madaki, who alleged that Fayose used associates to acquire properties in Nigeria and abroad—associates who later denied ownership, even though Fayose acknowledged the properties in his own statements.

He also relied on the testimony of former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, who claimed that Fayose personally requested cash payments and introduced Agbele to coordinate fund deliveries.

Despite these arguments, Justice Aneke ruled that the prosecution had not met the legal threshold to proceed to defence.

“The prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against the defendants,” the judge held. “Accordingly, the defendants are hereby discharged and acquitted.”

Following the ruling, Jacobs disclosed that the Commission is in the process of obtaining a certified true copy of the judgment and would file an appeal.

“We will study the judgment thoroughly and take appropriate steps, including filing an appeal,” he said.

Fayose, who served as Ekiti State governor from 2003 to 2006 and again from 2014 to 2018, has consistently denied any wrongdoing throughout the trial.