UPDATED : Court grants bail to suspended Kano anti-corruption boss, Muhuyi Magaji

A Kano Senior Magistrate Court has granted suspended Chairman of the state anti-corruption agency, Muhuyi Magaji Rimingado bail.

Solacebase reports that Muhuyi Magaji Rimingado was arraigned before the court on Friday for giving false information to the Kano State House of Assembly, contrary to section 140(a) of the Penal Code

He pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Senior Magistrate Aminu Gabari admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N500,000 with two reliable sureties in like sum.

He said one of the sureties should be the biological father or paternal/maternal uncle of the defendant and should provide evidence of payment of three years tax to government.

Gabari further directed that the second surety should be the Chief Imam of Sharada Kano Friday Mosque or the Village Head of Sharada.

He also ordered the defendant to desist from making any comments concerning the matter in print media or radio and to also submit his international passport to the court registrar.

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The Magistrate subsequently adjourned the case to May 4 for hearing.

Earlier, the Prosecution Counsel, Mr Wada A. Wada, had informed the court that the defendant committed the offence on July 5, 2021, when he presented fake medical certificates from the National Hospital Abuja.

“On June 30, 2021 Kano State House of Assembly (KSHA) received a petition from the Accountant General of the state against the defendant.

“Upon the petition, the KSHA set up ad-hoc committee to investigate the petition”

Wada said that on July 12, 2021 the ad-hoc committee invited the defendant to appear before it on July 14, 2021 to answer the allegations.

He alleged that the defendant failed to appear before the KSHA, but sent his lawyer to tell the committee he was sick and submitted five false medical laboratory certificates from National Hospital Abuja to the committee.

Wada objected to the bail application made by the defence counsel, adding that the defendant may likely jump bail if granted.

The Defence Counsel, Mr Muhammad Dan’azumi, prayed the court to exercise its discretion and admit his client to bail pursuant to section 35(6) 36 (5) of constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended and section 168 of ACJL 2019.

“The defendant is a legal practitioner, a family man and a resident of Kano. He cannot jump bail if granted and urged the court to grant him bail”.

The embattled anticorruption boss was arrested in Abuja on Thursday, shortly after undergoing screening as a governorship aspirant under the Peoples Democratic Party for Kano guber race.

He was subsequently flown to Kano around 10.00 pm in an AZMAN Airline plane, on Thursday and was brought to  court around 11.00am on Friday.