The Enugu Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned one Nwodo Martha, a former Principal Manager at Fidelity Structures Limited before Justice H. U. Ezugwu of the Enugu State High Court sitting in Independence Layout, Enugu State.

According to a statement by Dele Oyewale, EFCC’s Head, Media & Publicity, Martha was arraigned on nine-count charges bordering on stealing by fraudulent conversion to the tune of Thirty-nine Million, Eight Hundred and Forty-seven Thousand, Eight Hundred Naira (N39, 847, 800. 00).

Count Three reads: “That you Nwodo Martha from February to December 2017, in Nsukka Enugu State of Nigeria within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did commit a felony to wit: stealing by fraudulently converting to your personal use the aggregate sum of Five Million, Eight Hundred and Forty Thousand Naira (N5, 840, 000. 00) property of Fidelity Structures, the sum being payment for purchase of Brewery products”.

Count Seven reads: “That you, Nwodo Martha, from February to December 2021, in Nsukka Enugu State of Nigeria, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did commit a felony to wit: stealing by fraudulently converting to your personal use the aggregate sum of Nineteen Million, Five Hundred and Twenty Thousand, Five Hundred Naira (N19, 520, 500. 00) property of Fidelity Structures, the sum being payment for purchase of Brewery products”.

The offence is contrary to Section 342 of the Criminal Code Law, Revised Edition, Cap 30, Laws of Enugu State of Nigeria, 2004 and punishable under Section 353 (1) of the same Law.

The defendant pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to her. In view of her plea, counsel to the EFCC, Ahmad Yusuf Abdullahi prayed the court for a trial date and for the defendant to be remanded at Enugu State Correctional facility.

However, defence counsel, Chukwuemeka Okpoto Onah informed the court about the pending bail application before it and thereafter moved the said application. He prayed the court to grant bail to his client on liberal terms.

Responding, Abdullahi vehemently opposed the said bail application on the ground that “the defendant is not likely to attend her trial my Lord because of the gravity of the alleged offence”.

After listening to both sides, the court granted the defendant bail in the sum of Ten Million Naira (N10, 000, 000. 00) with a surety in like sum who must be a level 13 civil servant and the court registrar should verify the address of the said surety.

The court thereafter adjourned the matter to July 24, 2024 for trial while the defendant was remanded at Enugu State Correctional facility pending the perfection of the bail conditions.

Martha was arrested based on a petition from Fidelity Structures, one of the major distributors of Nigerian Breweries, alleging that, as one of its Principal Managers, she turned herself into a Sole Administrator, thereby blocking the Directors of the company from having information about the operations of the company as she allegedly released products to faceless sub distributors and fraudulently collected payments made for the products.

The petitioner also alleged that the defendant, who constantly approved for herself, salary advance, sold off two of the company’s delivery vans (Ford and Mercedes 813 truck ), which she claimed were missing but was later discovered to have been sold at her behest.

A batch of toxic illegal alcohol in India has killed at least 34 people with more than 100 others rushed to hospital, Tamil Nadu state officials told reporters Thursday.

The deadly mix of locally brewed arrack drink was laced with poisonous methanol, chief minister M.K. Stalin said, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

Stalin said arrests had been made over the deaths and warned such crimes “ruin society and will be suppressed with an iron fist,” according to a statement from his office.

Hundreds of people die every year in India from cheap alcohol made in backstreet distilleries.

In order to increase its potency the liquor is often spiked with methanol which can cause blindness, liver damage, and death.

In the Tamil Nadu case, more than 100 people were hospitalised according to M.S. Prasanth, a top government official in the state’s Kallakurichi district, quoted by Indian media.

State Governor R.N. Ravi was “deeply shocked” at the deaths, adding that “many more victims are in serious condition battling for (their) lives”, writing on social media platform X.

Tamil Nadu is not a dry state, but liquor traded on the black market comes at a lower price than alcohol sold legally.

Selling and consuming liquor is prohibited in several other parts of India, further driving the thriving black market for potent and sometimes lethal backstreet moonshine.

Last year, poisonous alcohol killed at least 27 people in one sitting in the eastern Indian state of Bihar, while in 2022, at least 42 people died in Gujarat.

Justice Emeka Nwite has declined to grant bail to suspended deputy commissioner of police, Abba Kyari, and two other suspended senior police officers.

In separate rulings, the court held that the defendants had not brought any evidence in court to warrant the court’s discretion.

Justice Nwite said that the court must exercise its discretion judiciously, and in this case, the court cannot grant bail to the defendants.

More details later…