Court grants P-Square’s Ex-Manager N50m bail amid th£ft charges

An Ikeja Special Offences Court has granted N50 million bail to Jude Okoye, the former manager of the popular Nigerian music P-Square.

Recall that Jude Okoye, who is also the elder brother of the Afrobeats superstars, Peter and Paul Okoye, popularly known as Psquare, has been charged with stealing a total of $1 million and £34,537.

The charges were filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which is investigating the alleged th£ft.

Jude Okoye, along with his company, Northside Music Ltd., is facing a four-count charge of th£ft. However, Jude has denied the charges, pleading not guilty to the allegations.

His legal team, led by senior advocate Clement Onwuenwunor, SAN, filed a bail application, which was heard by Justice Rahman Oshodi.

In his ruling, Justice Oshodi expressed that he had thoroughly considered the affidavit evidence and oral submissions from both the prosecution and defense before making his decision.

 He cited Section 115 (2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL), which grants the court discretion to grant bail in cases that are not punishable by death.

Based on this, Justice Oshodi was satisfied that bail should be granted to the defendant.

The judge set the bail sum at N50 million, with the additional condition that two sureties, each worth the same amount, be provided.

The sureties must also be gainfully employed and demonstrate a history of tax payments to the Lagos State Government for at least three years.

Another important condition outlined by the court was the submission of Okoye’s dual citizenship documents to the court’s chief registrar.