Justice A.O. Owoeye of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi ruled on Monday that Mr. Ezekiel Thankgod must appear in court to take his plea, adjourning the case to March 6, 2025, for his arraignment.

Thankgod, the former manager of gospel artiste Mercy Chinwo, has repeatedly evaded arraignment by the Lagos Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), prompting the court to issue a warrant for his arrest during proceedings on January 16, 2025.

He is set to be arraigned on a three-count charge bordering on money laundering and dishonest conversion amounting to $340,000.


One of the charges reads:

“That EZEKIEL ONYEDIKACHUKWU THANKGOD and EEZEE GLOBAL CONCEPTS LIMITED, sometime in 2023, directly retained the sum of $260,494 (Two Hundred and Sixty Thousand Four Hundred and Ninety-Four USD) in the EEZEE GLOBAL MINISTRY Zenith Bank Plc account, which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful activity—namely, the dishonest conversion of the said sum, property of Mercy Chinwo and Judith Kanayo.”

The offence contravenes Section 18(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and is punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.

The bench warrant issued on January 16, 2025, followed an application by prosecuting counsel, Bilikisu Buhari, who informed the court that the EFCC had been unable to serve the charges on the defendant due to his unreachability.


On January 24, 2025, defence counsel Dr. Monday Ubani, SAN, accepted service on behalf of Thankgod but filed a preliminary objection challenging the charges.

At Monday’s proceedings, when the defendant once again failed to appear, his counsel attempted to move the objection, arguing that the court lacked jurisdiction. However, Justice Owoeye refused to hear the motion, ruling that the defence could not be entertained until the accused was present in court.

Upon the judge’s inquiry about the defendant’s whereabouts, the defence counsel claimed Thankgod had been involved in a “terrible accident” that morning but assured the court he would appear at the next adjourned date.

Prosecuting counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, condemned the defence’s conduct, calling it “a show of shame and outright disrespect for this court.”

Citing Sections 396(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act and judicial precedents from State vs. Achara and Federal Republic of Nigeria vs. Yahaya Bello, Oyedepo urged the court not to entertain the defence’s objection.

He further revealed that, contrary to claims of being indisposed, the defendant had been seen within the court premises granting media interviews after the last adjourned hearing. He argued that if Thankgod was truly unwell, he should have provided an affidavit as proof.

After considering the arguments, Justice Owoeye reaffirmed that the court had not assumed jurisdiction over the case, as the defendant had yet to take his plea. He ruled that the existing bench warrant remained valid and instructed that Thankgod must appear in court on March 6, 2025, either through enforcement of the warrant or by voluntary production by his counsel.


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https://pmnewsnigeria.com/2025/02/17/where-is-he-judge-demands-mercy-chinwos-ex-manager-appear-in-court-over-alleged-340000-fraud/