The Lagos State High Court in Ikeja has convicted and sentenced a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Joseph Nwobike, who was accused of offering gratification to judges to one month imprisonment.
Justice Raliat Adebiyi found him guilty of the nine count charges preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
The judge held that Nwobike deliberately attempt to pervert the cause of justice by sending text message to a judicial official with instruction to influence the assignment of several cases to Justice Yunusa.
Dr. Nwobike was first arraigned on five count charges before it was later amended on two different occasions, each time leading to the re-arraignment of the SAN.
In the charges, EFCC claimed that Dr. Nwobike offered seven hundred and fifty thousand naira to Justices Mohammed Yunusa and three hundred thousand naira gratifications to Justice Hyeladzira Nganjiwa, respectively.
Both judges are serving in Lagos Federal High Court.
The judge noted that Dr Nwobike conviction should send a signal about the seriousness of the government to fight corruption.
