By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem
A United Arab Emirates Court of Cassation in Dubai yesterday, ruled that former Governor of Delta state, James Ibori, be extradited to the United Kingdom to face trial for money laundering, forgery, credit card fraud and grand theft charges.
The ruling followed a similar decision by the court of first instance in Dubai which ordered Ibori’s extradition to the UK last October.
UK authorities have successfully prosecuted Ibori’s sister, Christine Ibie-Ibori, his mistress, Udoamaka Okoronkwo (nee Onuigbo) on the same charges. Both women are currently, serving jail terms in a UK prison.
Ibori’s wife, Theresa Nkoyo, and his UK-based lawyers, Bhadresh Gohil were also convicted recently.
In a swift reaction to the judgement, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) hailed the ruling, insisting that it would serve the cause of justice.
The commission’s Head of Media and Publicity, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement that, “the ruling today (yesterday) by the appellate court in Dubai, only goes to confirm our earlier position issued after the first ruling in October, that justice is universal and applicable anywhere in the world.
“We have been cooperating with authorities in other jurisdictions on this matter and we will continue to do this until the cause of justice is fully served irrespective of the ignorance and misrepresentations being peddled by mischief-makers.”
Meanwhile, UK officials said they expect Ibori to be flown to the UK soon even though Ibori has legal rights to appeal against the judgment before the UAE Supreme Court.
Subscribe to this comment's feed
