Embattled senior lawyer, Rickey Tarfa, continued with the battle of his life against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday with an affidavit he had earlier filed urging the Lagos State High Court, Igbosere, to quash the charge against him before the court.
The EFCC filed a counter-affidavit last week stating the real reason why Tarfa was taken to court.
But Justice Aishat Opesanwo of the Lagos State High Court adjourned till 21st March for the hearing of the pending applications.
In the counter-affidavit, the EFCC alleged that Tarfa, who was arraigned on February 16 on two counts of willful attempt to pervert the course of justice by obstructing an officer of the agency from carrying out his lawful duty.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The 28-paragraph counter-affidavit from the EFCC stated that in the process of investigating a petition dated 16 December, 2013, written by a Lagos lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, the defendant filed two fundamental rights enforcement suits No FHC/L/CS/715/2015- Rena Prestige Industries Nigeria Ltd and Mr. Gnanhouse Sourou Nazaira Vs EFCC and two others and FHC/L/CS/716/ 2015- Hair Prestige Manufacturing Nigeria Ltd Vs EFCC and two others respectively at the Federal High Court, Lagos division on behalf of his clients against EFCC.
The EFCC said Justice Mohammed Yunusa of the Federal High court presided over the two suits in which the judge delivered judgement 8 September, 2015respectively in favour of the defendants and his clients, and the court also awarded N10 million in the two cases as damages against the EFCC and two other respondents.
The anti-graft agency also stated that during the pendency of the proceedings in the said suits, the commission received intelligence report that Tarfa was allegedly communicating with Justice Yunusa with a view to getting a favourable judgment against the commission.
According to the EFCC,investigation confirmed this report and further revealed that the chambers of the defendants were in the habit of instructing the registrars of the Federal High Court to assign matters being handled by the chambers to Justice Yunusa .
Counsel to the Tarfa, Nnaemeka Nigige (SAN) told the court that the EFCC served his client the counter-affidavit on Friday at about 2:50pm and that because of this, his client was unable to reply until Monday morning in the court.
The EFCC prosecuting counsel Gbolahan Latona, also said him and his client needed more time to study the reply served on them for them to reply.
