The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday struck out the police charge against the remaining 24 foreign hackers facing prosecution out of the 109 being tried for allegations bordering on cybercrime.
Justice Ekerete Akpan of the FHC sitting in Abuja in a short ruling struck out the charge for lack of diligent prosecution.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the case, which came up October 23, 2025, had witnessed several adjournments due to the prosecution and defence lawyers’ attitudes.
The police had on October 23, 2025 told the court that the whereabouts of the 24 remaining foreign nationals was unknown.
The police lawyer, Victor Okoye, made this known to Justice Akpan at the resumed hearing of the trial, after at least 85 of the defendants were earlier convicted, fined, and ordered to be deported.
Okoye said the 24 foreigners were yet to be apprehended by the security agency.
“My lord, the defendants are at large and we are yet to apprehend them,” he had said.
It would be recalled that Justice Akpan had in August 2025 convicted 21 of the 109 foreign nationals charged and fined them N1 million each after they opted for a plea bargain agreement.
The judge, who alternatively ordered them to serve a one-year jail term, also ordered their deportation from Nigeria after meeting the judgment terms.
He further directed that all the gadgets used in the commission of the crimes should be forfeited to the Federal Government.
Justice Akpan also on October 14, 2025 convicted a set of another 59 of the foreign hackers on the same plea bargain deal with the Nigerian Police Force, leaving 24 defendants who chose to face the trial.
The judge then adjourned the matter until October 22, 2025 and October 23, 2025 for trial of the 24 defendants.
However, when the matter came up on October 22, 2025, the defendants were not in court and the matter was adjourned until October 23, 2025.
However upon resumed hearing, Okoye told the court that the defendants were still at large and that the police were yet to apprehend them.
The lawyer informed the court that he had an amended charge and that he was ready to proceed.
Justice Akpan told him that his amended charge cannot be taken when the defendants were not in court.
Okoye then sought an adjournment to do the needful and the judge adjourned the matter until December 10, 2025 for hearing.
The Inspector General of Police had in the charge, marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/599/2024, sued the 109 foreigners and were arraigned on six counts.
The defendants, who included nationals of China, Indonesia, Brazil, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand, had pleaded not guilty to the counts and were remanded in correctional centres.
Justice Akpan had on November 29, 2024 admitted them to a N1 billion bail with five sureties each.
The judge, who granted them bail, directed that the five sureties must have a landed property worth N200,000 million each.
Justice Akpan directed that the sureties must deposit the original and verified documents of their landed property with the deputy registrar of the court.
The judge also directed the sureties to deposit their international passports.
While the male defendants were remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre, the court held that the female defendants should be kept at Keffi Correctional Centre in Nasarawa State pending the perfection of their bail terms.
The defendants, who had all met their bail terms, were in 2024 arrested by the police.
They were apprehended in their residence at Plot 1906, Cadastral Zone 807, Katampe District of Abuja, where they were said to be engaging in cybercrime by allegedly promoting “a fraudulent and unregistered gaming platform”.
In the six-count charge, the foreigners were charged with cybercrime, money laundering, and unlawfully residing in Nigeria among others.
In one of the counts, they were alleged to have aided, abetted, conspired among themselves “to commit an offence, to wit; cybercrime”.
They were alleged to have committed the offence contrary to and punishable under Section 27 (1) (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act, 2015 (As Amended, 2024).
They were also alleged to have accessed a computer network and input with the intention that such inauthentic data will be considered or acted upon as If they were authentic or genuine.
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