Court imposes stringent bail conditions on 109 foreigners charged with cybercrimes

Federal High Court On Friday, 109 foreign nationals accused of cyber crimes were granted bail under strict conditions in Abuja.

The trial judge, Ekerete Akpan, ordered that each of the 109 defendants be required to provide five sureties, with each surety required to post a N200 million bail bond.

They are unusual bail conditions that potentially affect the foreign status of defendants. Generally, courts do not require more than two sureties from defendants.

The court on Friday granted bail to the 109 foreigners, with their lawyer, Senior Advocate Ogwu Onoja of Nigeria (SAN) arguing their bail plea on Friday.

Nigerian police have arrested 130 suspects, including 113 foreign nationals – 87 men and 26 women – and 17 Nigerians, for alleged involvement in cyber crime, hacking and other activities deemed a threat to national security, Premium Times reports. – 4 men and 13 women are included.

The arrests followed a coordinated raid on a building at the Next Cash and Carry area of ​​Jahi, Abuja, where the suspects were allegedly using computers and advanced devices to carry out criminal operations.

The defendants, who include citizens of China, Indonesia, Brazil, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand, have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Other conditions imposed on them include that sureties must also be residents of Abuja and own real estate worth N200 million each.

They will also have to swear an affidavit of means and submit original copies of their property documents to the court which will be attested by the registrar of the court.

Mr Akpan further ordered that the accused persons and their five sureties must surrender all their original travel documents to the Registrar of the court and must not leave Nigeria during the period of their trial.

The defendants and sureties must also submit two copies of their recent passport photographs to the court.

The trial judge agreed with Mr Onoja that the essence of bail is to allow defendants to prepare a defence, and it is at the discretion of the court to grant such bail.

Also read: Alleged cyber crime: Court orders remand of 109 foreigners

The judge said he was not unaware of the fact that the accused persons were foreigners, but the law of the country presumed innocence until the contrary was established.

Pending the completion of the bail conditions, Mr Akpan ordered that the males among the accused persons be remanded to Kuje Prison, while the females be detained at Keffi Prison in Nasarawa.

A. S. The prosecution, led by Egwu, had opposed the bail plea of ​​the defendants.

Rejecting the objection, Mr Akpan said the charges against the foreigners are not capital and therefore bailable with conditions.

As of the time of this report, all the accused persons have been taken to jail, where they will remain pending trial until they complete their bail conditions.

The judge fixed 27 February 2025 for his hearing.