The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has urged the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi (SAN); and the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu; to conduct an independent investigation into allegations made by a blogger, Martins Otse known as VeryDarkMan, that some officers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) collected ₦15 million from controversial cross dresser, Idris Okuneye, popularly known as Bobrisky, to dismiss money laundering charges against him.
In a statement on Wednesday, NBA President Afam Osigwe said EFCC officers found culpable must be dismissed and prosecuted.
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, had ordered an investigation into bribery allegations levelled against some officers of the commission and invited Bobrisky and VeryDarkMan.
In a viral video, VeryDarkMan alleged that Bobrisky paid ₦15 million for the anti-graft agency to drop money laundering charges against him during his naira spraying ordeal in April after which a court sentenced him to six months’ imprisonment.
The blogger also alleged that Bobrisky paid some millions of naira to secure a choice place in prison.
Bobrisky has since denied the allegations while the EFCC and the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) have ordered investigations into the allegations by the blogger.
In its statement, the NBA said, “The allegation of bribery to reduce or drop charges is very disturbing. An urgent and thorough investigation is needed to determine whether bribes were paid or are sometimes paid to influence the nature of charges brought against defendants in criminal cases.”
“The NBA therefore demands that the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) not only respond to the allegation that Bobrisky did not serve his time in a correctional facility but also provide transparent details on the conditions under which Bobrisky served his sentence.
“If it is proven that he was allowed to serve his sentence outside a Correctional Facility, in breach of the law and a court order, the officers and officials responsible must be prosecuted and dismissed from service.”
The NBA asked the AGF and the NSA to conduct independent investigations into the allegations.
“We also call upon the Attorney General of the Federation, EFCC, and the Office of the National Security Adviser to independently investigate allegations that a convict paid a bribe to be allowed to serve prison time in a private residence instead of in a Correctional Facility, as well as the allegation that a bribe was demanded in exchange for a government pardon.
“The suggestion that convicts can freely serve their time in private residences and potentially procure a pardon by paying a bribe undermines the very foundation of our criminal justice system and erodes public confidence in the system.
“We believe that this investigation will provide the individuals named in these allegations the opportunity to clarify their roles (if any) in this matter. If these allegations are found to be true, it would not only mock our correctional system but also serve as a wake-up call for necessary reforms in our prosecutorial and correctional processes.
“The NBA shall appoint eminent members of the legal profession to monitor this situation and ensure that due process is followed,” the statement partly read.