The Court of Appeal in Lagos, in its July 1, 2022 judgment, gave Senator Nwaoboshi a seven-year prison term over the purchase of Guinea House in Apapa for N805 million.
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The Supreme Court has quashed the seven-year prison sentence of former Delta North lawmaker, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, over fraud and money laundering allegations.
An immediate release of the ex-Senator from Ikoyi Prisons in Lagos, where he is currently being held, was requested by the apex court.
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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had charged Golden Touch Construction Project Ltd and Suiming Electrical Ltd with two counts each, but the court cleared them as well.
In a four-to-one split decision, the Supreme Court overturned the Lagos Court of Appeal’s ruling from July 1, 2022, which had overturned the defendants’ release and acquittal by a Federal High Court in Lagos.
The apex court had found out that Senator Nwaoboshi and the two firms were unfairly and maliciously prosecuted by the EFCC for allegedly committing offences that are unknown to the law, and that their prosecution for a civil transaction was unnecessary, Justice Emmanuel Agim‘s lead decision on the case said.
The anti-graft agency alleged that Nwaoboshi and his firms illegally purchased a property named Guinea House on Marine Road in Apapa, Lagos, for N805 million, which belonged to the Delta State Government and was purchased by Nwaoboshi and his companies. It also alleged that the funds, Senator Nwaoboshi and his companies used to pay for the property were proceeds of crime.
The former federal lawmaker represented Delta North Senatorial District in the Ninth National Assembly.
