A Federal High Court in Abuja, yesterday, admitted? former Bayelsa State Governor Timipire Sylva to bail for N100 million with one surety in like sum.
While delivering ruling on Sylva’s bail application, the trial judge, Justice Adamu Bello said that the surety must be a responsible Nigerian resident in the federal capital territory.
The court said that the surety must have a landed property in any part of Abuja worth N100m and that the title to the property must be deposited with the Registrar of the court.
Meanwhile, Justice Bello ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to release Sylva from its custody to enable him prepare for full trial.
He directed the former governor to deposit his personal, official and diplomatic passport with the court and must not travel out of the country without express permission of the court.
EFCC had arraigned Sylva on a six-count charge of fraudulently procuring N2 billion loan from Union Bank Plc purportedly to augment salaries of the state’s civil servants.
The commission said the former governor connived with certain officials of the state and others now at large to short change the state to the tune of N2 billion while in office. Sylva’s lawyer, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) asked the court to admit him to bail after he pleaded not guilty to the six count-charge.
Justice Bello while granting the bail request agreed with Sylva’s lawyer,? Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) that the alleged offence was bailable since it was not a capital one and do not attract death sentence.