Godsent Ogbebor
EFCC: Ex-Abia Governor Orji, Son Arraigned for Alleged N49.5bn Fraud
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday arraigned former Abia State Governor, Senator Theodore Orji, his son and former Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Chinedum Orji, alongside three others, over alleged conspiracy and misappropriation of public funds amounting to billions of naira.
Also arraigned were a former Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Philip Nto; a former Director of Finance, Government House, Mr. Romanus Madu; and a contractor, King Obioma.
The case, marked HU/69c/2024 and filed on October 8, 2024, was heard at Court 1 of the Abia State High Court, where the defendants faced a 16-count charge.
The EFCC legal team, led by Senior Advocates of Nigeria Kemi Pinheiro and Rotimi Oyedepo, presented the charges before the trial judge, Chief Judge of Abia State, Justice Lilian Abai.
The charges include the alleged misappropriation of ₦22.5 billion in security votes allocated to Abia State between 2011 and 2015, ₦2 billion from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) fund, ₦12 billion from the Paris Club refund, and ₦13 billion from a loan facility granted by the defunct Diamond Bank Plc to the state government.
Read also: EFCC: Banker Sentenced to Four Years in Prison for ₦4m Fraud
The defendants all pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The court granted bail to each of them in the sum of ₦50 million and adjourned the case to June 18 and 19 for the EFCC to begin its prosecution.
Speaking after the court session, one of the defense lawyers, Daniel Anya, dismissed the charges as “bogus,” praising the court for granting bail to his clients, whom he described as “respected citizens and elder statesmen.”
He further stated that the EFCC bears the burden of proving its allegations, emphasizing that under Nigerian law, an accused person remains innocent until proven guilty.
