The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday re-arraigned former National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki, former governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa and four others over diversion over N19 billion.

Dasuki and Bafarawa were re-arraigned before Justice Husseini Baba-Yusuf of an FCT High Court alongside former minister of state for finance, Bashir Yuguda, former director of finance at the Office of the NSA, Shuaibu Salisu, son of Bafarawa, Sagir Attahiru and Bafarawas’ firm, Dalhatu Investment Limited.

The EFCC in the 22-count charge accused the six defendants of diverting over N19 billion belonging to the Federal Government of Nigeria from the accounts of the Office of the NSA and the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). They pleaded not guilty to all the counts.

Counsels to all the defendants also applied for the bail conditions granted to the defendants before Justice Peter Affen when they were earlier arraigned to continue.

Jacobs, in objecting to the bail application of Dasuki, submitted that since there is no record to show that Dasuki has for one day enjoyed any bail condition, but has always been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS),”the court should not act in vain”.

Dasuki’s counsel told the court that the fact that the DSS has decided to continue to keep Dasuki in custody against the ruling of the court and that of the ECOWAS court should never be used as a basis for the court not to reaffirm the bail terms. He said his continuous detention is “extraneous”.

In his ruling, Justice Baba-Yusuf held the bail terms granted to all the defendants in the previous court should continue. The matter was adjourned to February 24th for trial to commence.