An Abuja High Court on Monday granted bail to former Skye Bank Plc Board Chairman, Tunde Ayeni, in the sum of N200 million over the alleged N15.7 billion fraud charges filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Ayeni, who is facing a 17-count charge of fraud involving about N15.6 billion, pleaded not guilty to the allegations when the charges were read in court.
Trial judge, Justice Jude Onwuzuruike, after listening to arguments from the defence counsel, Dele Adesina (SAN), granted the bail with two sureties in the same amount.
In his ruling, Justice Onwuzuruike emphasised that the primary purpose of bail is to secure the defendant’s attendance at trial.
He described the EFCC’s claim that Ayeni could influence the trial as speculative and ruled that it was not enough grounds to deny him bail.
The judge also reaffirmed the constitutional principle that an accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The court imposed stringent conditions: the two sureties must be federal civil servants who will submit their national identity cards, letters of employment, and proof of ownership of properties valued at a minimum of N500 million each.
Additionally, one of the sureties must provide a bank guarantee of N15 billion.Pending the perfection of these conditions, the court directed the correctional authorities to allow Ayeni reasonable access to his legal team.
The case has a history. In 2019, Ayeni was prosecuted by the EFCC alongside Timothy Oguntayo on similar allegations.
Both pleaded not guilty at the time, but the matter was later resolved through an out-of-court settlement, which received the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria and was adopted as the court’s judgment.
The matter has now been adjourned for further hearing.
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