Justice K.N. Ogbunnaya of High Court 15, Federal Capital Territory, has declined to recuse herself from a criminal case brought by the Federal Government through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Alhaji Mohammed Danjuma and Prince Chibuike Echem over alleged conspiracy, inducement and forgery.
The defendants had applied for the judge to step down from the matter, citing grounds for recusal. Justice Ogbonnaya, however, dismissed the application and proceeded to order that she will proceed to trial.
Earlier, the defendants had petitioned the Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory seeking his intervention and reassignment of the case. The request was granted and the matter was transferred to another court presided over by Justice Y. Halilu.
However, in a dramatic twist, when the case was listed before Justice Halilu, he informed the parties that the matter had been reassigned back to the court of Justice Ogbonnaya.
When the matter came up today, March 25, 2026, before Justice Ogbunnaya, the defendants appeared without legal representation. They told the court that their counsel had abandoned them in the case.
They cited several developments following the ruling on their bail application, including the alleged refusal to release the certified true copy (CTC) of the ruling, among other grievances.
In her remarks, Justice Ogbonnaya said the release of the certified true copy (CTC) of the ruling was purely an administrative matter and attributed the delay to the court’s erratic power supply.
She however insisted that the case would continue as scheduled, even without the defendants’ legal representation. According to her, only the Chief Judge has the authority to direct the hearing of a case or order its reassignment, and therefore proceedings would continue until he says otherwise.
When the defendants appealed for time to engage new counsel, she declined the request and adjourned to tomorrow March 26, 2026
