Trial of Naira Marley Stalled Due to Pending Application for Fiat

The criminal trial of Nigerian singer Azeez Fashola, popularly known as Naira Marley, was unable to proceed before a Federal High Court in Lagos on Wednesday, as a pending application for fiat before the Chief Judge (CJ) of the court delayed the proceedings. The trial judge, Justice Isaac Dipeolu, was informed by the prosecutor, Mrs. Bilikisu Buhari, that an application for fiat to enable the former judge to continue with the trial of the defendant is awaiting approval by the CJ of the court, dated December 8, 2023.

Naira Marley is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on charges bordering on cybercrime, with the charges preferred against him on May 14, 2019. He was arraigned on May 20, 2019, before Justice Nicholas Oweiboo, where he pleaded not guilty and was granted bail in the sum of two million naira, with two sureties in like sum.

The trial had commenced in the case, and witnesses were still being led in evidence, but Justice Oweibo, who was handling the case, was transferred out of the Lagos division of the court. The case was then transferred to a new judge, Justice Dipeolu.

When the case was called before Justice Dipeolu, both the prosecution and defense confirmed the pending application for fiat, leading to the adjournment of the case until May 30 for a report.

The EFCC alleges that Naira Marley committed the offenses on different dates between Nov. 26, 2018, and Dec. 11, 2018, as well as May 10, 2019. It is alleged that he conspired with others to use different Access Bank ATM cards to defraud their victims and possessed counterfeit credit cards belonging to different people, with the intent to defraud, contravening the provisions of the Cyber Crime (Prohibition) Prevention Act, 2015.