Kwara State Government has filed a 20-count charge against former Senate President Bukola Saraki and former Governor Abdulfatai Ahmed over allegations of their involvement in the arming of suspects convicted in the Offa armed robbery incident of April 2018.
Also named in the charge, filed under case number KWS/114C/26, are Yusuf Abdulwahab, a former Chief of Staff to Ahmed, and Alabi Olalekan, another aide.
Moreover,the defendants are expected to be arraigned before Justice Haleemah Salman of the Kwara State High Court in Ilorin on June 4.
And charges follow the Court of Appeal’s affirmation of earlier convictions linked to the robbery case, including Ayo Akinnibosun, who allegedly confessed during trial to being a hitman within a political network.
The state government alleged that weapons and other exhibits connected to the crime were recovered from the Government House and a state ministry in 2018 and later tendered in court as evidence leading to the convictions.
Saraki has denied any involvement, accusing the state government of pursuing a politically motivated case aimed at tarnishing his reputation.
In parts of the evidence presented in court, Akinnibosun claimed he led a group of armed political operatives allegedly linked to Saraki and then-Governor Ahmed, adding that they received financial support and operational backing.
He also alleged that firearms and a vehicle bearing Saraki’s number plate were provided through a senior government official.
