Ex-Mint MD to Appeal Court: Quash extradition order

Former Managing Director of the Nigerian Security Minting and Printing Company (NSMPC), Emmanuel Ehidiamhem Okoyomon, has prayed the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, to set aside the verdict of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, acceding to the request of the Federal Government to extradite him to the United Kingdom for trial.
Already, pending the hearing and determination of his appeal, Okoyomon has also moved to stall any possible attempt by the government to whisk him away to the United Kingdom by filing a motion to stay execution of the said verdict delivered on May 4, 2015.
In a Notice of Appeal filed on Okoyomon’s behalf by his counsel, Dr Alex Izinyon (SAN), he formulated four grounds why the decision of the Federal High Court should be upturned.
Izinyon contended that “the learned trial Judge erred in law when he ordered the extradition of the appellant to Great Britain to stand criminal trial.”
He cited three particulars of error to support ground one, which includes the following:
* There is no subsisting Act of the National Assembly or treaty between Nigeria and Great Britain upon which the decision of the court was premised.
* There was also no Order made by the President of Federal Republic of Nigeria applying the provisions of the Extradition Act. Cap E25, LFN 2004 to Great Britain as envisaged by Section 1(6) of ‎the Extradition Act, Cap E25, LFN 2004.
* The Order for the Extradition of the Appellant is not supported by any legislation.
In ground two, Izinyon submitted that “the learned trial court erred in law when he held that the Extradition Treaty between Great Britain and the United States of America signed at London on November 22, 1931 is applicable to Nigeria and ordered the extradition of the Appella‎nt to Great Britain to stand trial, relying on the said treaty between Great Britain and the United States of America”.
In support of ground two, he cited seven particulars of error, where he stated that “the said treaty between the Great Britain and United States of America is not applicable to Nigeria.”
However, wary that the government may overreach him and extradite him to the UK, Okoyomon filed a motion for stay of execution of the extradition order of Justice Evoh Chukwu.
In the said motion, he prayed the court for an order of court staying the execution of Justice Chukwu’s judgement delivered on May 4, 2015.
The United Kingdom had forwarded an extradition request to the Federal Government for Okoyomon, requiring him to come answer to charges relating to his alleged role in the bribery scandal involving officials of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the NSMPC and Securency International Pty of Australia between 2006 and 2008.