A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has barred the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Providus Bank Plc from arresting the chief executive officer of Rexglobe Fuel Services Limited Chukwunonso Nwobi over a N3.4 billion loan dispute.
Justice James Omotosho, ruling on May 5, held that the loan transaction between the company and Providus Bank Plc is purely contractual and does not need the interference of the EFCC, reports Nairametrics on Friday.
Mr Nwobi, through his lawyer Joe Agi (SAN), sued the EFCC, Adenike Babalola (head of economic governance, EFCC), the bank, and its MD/CEO, Walter Akpani, for breaching his fundamental rights and threatening his business operations.
Agi said that Rexglobe Fuel Services Limited had a banking relationship with Providus Bank and sometime on November 20, 2020, the bank offered a banking facility of N3.4 billion to the company for the order of 40,000 metric tons of automotive gas oil (AGO), among others.
The lawyer noted that the applicant was shocked when the EFCC operatives invaded his company and home, and detained him for days until he produced three sureties.
“Subsequently, he was shown a petition by the bank (by EFCC) which alleged that the applicant diverted the sum of $2,265,582.34 being monies availed to Rexglobe Fuel Services Limited by Providus Bank Plc,” he said.
Agi urged the court to restrain the respondents from arresting his client over the loan dispute as well as pay him N10 billion compensation.
EFCC counsel Rita Ogah said the agency’s operatives had a search warrant and did not breach the fundamental rights of the applicant.
Counsel for Providus Bank M. Aribisala said that after being granted the loan facility of N3.4 billion to enable the company to meet an order of 40,000 metric tons of AGO, the company then used the loan facilities to purchase forex in US dollars at the prevailing rate of N496 to $1 at the time.
The lawyer argued that the applicant failed to divulge the type of businesses he invested the money into and instead stated that he was willing to commence repayment in instalments to be worked out between himself and the bank.
Justice Omotosho ruled that the matter was a civil case which did not concern the EFCC.
“There is absolutely no basis for the arrest and detention of the Applicant as this Court from the evidence before it does not see any reasonable suspicion of crime against the Applicant. Consequently, the arrest of the Applicant no matter the length is hereby declared unlawful and carried out in bad faith against the Applicant,” the judge said.
He said labelling the loan facility as public funds does not alter the nature of the transaction, explaining that the monies belonging to a bank may be held in trust for its customers who are members of the public but does not make it public funds in the sense of government fund which belongs to the generality of the Nigerian public.
The judge ordered the respondents to pay the applicant N2 million as compensation.
