The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has re-arrested the internet celebrity, Ismaila Mustapha, also known as Mompha over unresolved money laundering charges.
EFCC confirmed the news on Monday. The agency’s counsel, Suleiman Suleiman, told a Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, that an arrest has been made on the socialite.
Suleiman said, “The prosecution will like to bring to the knowledge of My Lord that in collaboration with our international partners, we have been able to apprehend the defendant. We plan to take him into custody and produce him before the court. The counsel for the defendant reached out to me seeking an adjournment that he will be absent today in court.”
Recall that the defendant who had refused to appear in court on September 21st, 2022, prolonged the commencement of the trial.
He was charged to court alongside his company, Ismalob Global Investment on an eight-count charge of laundering N6 billion.
Other charges include possession of document containing false pretense, use of property derived from an unlawful act,money laundering through unlawful activities and failure to disclose assets.
In June, 2022, the defendant had equally been absent leading to the court placing him on a bench warrant for travelling to Dubai with a new passport after his passport had been initially seized to hinder him from fleeing the country.
The judge, Mojisola Dada, revoked his bail following his absence in 2022. Following his arrest on Monday, May 15, 2023, Dada adjourned the case to July 3, 2023.
