The Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal has dismissed the bail application filed by convicted former Acting Accountant-General of the Federation, Chukwunyere Anamekwe Nwabuoku, who is serving a 72-year jail term over ₦868.4 million money laundering.
A three-member panel of the appellate court dismissed the application on Friday, July 10, 2026, for lacking merit.
Nwabuoku had approached the Court of Appeal seeking to be admitted to bail pending the determination of his appeal against the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which convicted and sentenced him to prison.
Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja, had on March 23, 2026, convicted Nwabuoku and sentenced him to 72 years’ imprisonment at the Kuje Medium Security Correctional Centre, Abuja, for money laundering involving ₦868,465,000.
Following the conviction, Nwabuoku filed an appeal and, on May 8, 2026, through his counsel, N. I. Quakers, SAN, applied for bail on health grounds.
In the application, the former Acting Accountant-General claimed that his health had deteriorated and that he required medical attention beyond what the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, which serves inmates of the Kuje Correctional Centre, could provide.
He also argued that he was a responsible citizen who had served as Acting Accountant-General of the Federation and had credible sureties willing to stand for him if granted bail.
However, counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, opposed the application in a counter-affidavit filed on May 25, 2026.
The EFCC argued that the offences for which Nwabuoku was convicted were serious, involving massive corruption and misuse of public funds.
Iheanacho submitted that there was no medical evidence before the court showing that the appellant could not continue receiving treatment, including surgery, at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital while serving his sentence.
The prosecution further argued that the fact that Nwabuoku had been taken from the Kuje Correctional Centre to the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital for medical evaluation showed that the correctional authorities were responsive to his medical needs and had not denied him treatment.
The EFCC also warned that granting bail to the former Acting Accountant-General pending appeal would undermine public confidence in the administration of criminal justice and the anti-corruption campaign.
“Granting bail to the Appellant/Applicant in the circumstances of this case would send a wrong signal to the public and undermine confidence in the fight against corruption, money laundering and the misuse of public funds earmarked for national security,” Iheanacho argued.
Delivering the decision of the panel, Justice Adebukola Banjoko held that the application was unmeritorious.
The court consequently dismissed the bail application, meaning Nwabuoku will remain in custody while his appeal against conviction and sentence proceeds.
