The court postponed Ajudua’s $1 million case indefinitely

The trial of Lagos-based businessman, Fred Ajudua, over an alleged $1.043 million fraud was on Monday postponed indefinitely by the Lagos State Special Offenses Court sitting in Ikeja.

Judge Mojisola Dada ordered the postponement indefinitely after rejecting a motion filed by the defense during the trial.

Ajudua is facing charges for allegedly defrauding a Palestinian businessman, Zad Abu Zalaf, of $1,043,000.

The case has a long history in court since it was first filed in 2005 before Justice MO Obadina of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja.

The trial over the years has repeatedly stalled due to legal disputes and technical challenges raised by the defense, delaying the arraignment of the accused.

After Justice Obadina withdrew from the case, the matter was handed back to Justice JE Oyefeso and then to Justice Dada, before whom Ajudua was finally arraigned on June 4, 2018.

Judge Dada initially refused the accused bail, so Ajudua applied to the High Court in Lagos, which granted him bail on September 10, 2018. Dissatisfied with the decision, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) appealed to the Supreme Court.

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) also challenged the previous appeals court decision which ordered the case to be transferred from Judge Dada to another judge to start a new case.

The Supreme Court then resolved both issues and supported the prosecution, ordering that the case be returned to the Chief Judge of Lagos State to be handed back to Judge Dada to continue the trial and ensure a speedy decision.

However, new legal developments emerged during Monday’s hearing.

Defense counsel, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, informed the court that the new judgment handed down by the High Court on January 30, 2026 had granted bail to the accused and ordered that the case be transferred to another court for resumption.

Ojo explained that the original copy of the decision that had been ratified had been submitted to the court and was attached to the notification application submitted by the defendant on March 5 2026.

READ ALSO: Tinubu writes to Senate to screen, confirm tax reform boss, Oyedele, former Senator Abe and others

According to him, the appeals court decision means that the current court no longer has the authority to continue the trial.

He further revealed that the defense had written to the Chief Judge of Lagos State requesting transfer of the case to another High Court judge so that the matter could be commenced de novo.

The senior advocate added that his defense relied on the High Court’s decision and not on the motion filed on March 5.

Responding to this, prosecutor SK Atteh told the court that the prosecutor only received the defense application on Friday evening.

Atteh argued that although the Court of Appeal granted bail to the defendant, the decision did not expressly order the transfer of the case to another court.

He also informed the court that the defense had filed another motion with the Superior Court seeking clarification or interpretation of the ruling regarding the alleged order to transfer the case to another judge—an issue he said had already been decided by the Supreme Court.

Prosecutors urged the court to dismiss the motion if the defense no longer relied on it.

After hearing arguments from both sides, Judge Dada dismissed the motion and adjourned the case indefinitely, effectively delaying further proceedings pending clarification of the legal issues raised.

Meanwhile, the defense has also submitted another application to the Supreme Court. Ajudua’s legal counsel filed a motion on February 24, 2026 asking the Court of Appeal to set aside the previous ruling handed down on May 9, 2025 in this protracted case.