The former chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team, Abdulrasheed Maina, has asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to vary his bail terms in his money laundering trial. Justice Okon Abang had in November, 2019 granted Maina bail in the sum of N1 billion bail bonds and two sureties in like sum.
The judge ordered that the two sureties, who must be serving senators, must produce N500m bond each and must always be in court each day of the trial.
At the resumed hearing yesterday, counsel to Maina, Mazi Afam Osigwe, informed the court that his client had failed to meet the bail terms due to the provision that the lawmakers must be physically present during his trial days.
He therefore asked the court to vary the terms of the bail. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had on October 25 arraigned Maina and his son, Faisal, separately on 12-count charges and three-count charges respectively of money laundering and concealment of proceeds of unlawful act.
Meanwhile, the court fixed the trial for today (Tuesday) for continuation of hearing.