The Court of Appeal, Abuja, has dismissed a bail-pending-appeal application by Chukwunyere Nwabuoku, former Acting Accountant-General of the Federation, who is serving a 72-year sentence (eight years on each of nine counts) for laundering ₦868.5 million in public funds.
A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, Abuja, led by Justice Adebukola Banjoko, has dismissed the bail-pending-appeal application filed by Chukwunyere Nwabuoku, a former Acting Accountant-General of the Federation.
Nwabuoku was convicted by the Federal High Court on nine counts relating to the laundering of ₦868.5 million in public funds, brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and sentenced to eight years' imprisonment on each count — reported cumulatively as a 72-year term. The Federal High Court's conviction and sentence are matters of record; Nwabuoku's appeal against that conviction remains pending before the appellate court.
The application before the panel sought his release from custody while that appeal is determined. Nwabuoku's application was grounded in his health: he argued that his medical condition had deteriorated in custody and that he required specialised treatment beyond what the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital — the designated facility for inmates of Kuje Medium Security Custodial Centre — could provide. The EFCC opposed the application. The panel held that there was no medical evidence he could not continue receiving treatment, including surgery if necessary, at that hospital while serving his sentence, and found that Nwabuoku had failed to establish special or exceptional circumstances to warrant his release pending the outcome of the appeal. The application was dismissed accordingly.
The legal standard
Bail pending appeal is a distinct procedural question from bail pending trial. Once a trial court has convicted and sentenced a defendant, the presumption of innocence that governs pre-conviction bail no longer applies. Nigerian appellate courts have consistently held that an applicant seeking bail pending appeal must show "special or exceptional circumstances" — a materially higher threshold than that applied before conviction. Courts weigh factors such as the applicant's health, the likely length of time before the appeal is heard, the apparent strength of the grounds of appeal, and whether the sentence itself would be substantially served before the appeal could be concluded. The panel's ruling turned on this threshold, finding that the medical evidence presented did not meet it.
The dismissal does not determine the merits of Nwabuoku's substantive appeal against his conviction, which remains before the Court of Appeal. This report concerns the bail ruling only.
Background
Nwabuoku briefly served as Acting Accountant-General of the Federation in 2022, following the suspension of Ahmed Idris from that office. The EFCC's case against Nwabuoku concerned an earlier period, when he served as Director of Finance and Accounts at the Ministry of Defence between 2019 and 2021.
Ahmed Idris faces a separate and long-running trial involving allegations of fraud running to ₦109 billion. That matter is distinct from the case against Nwabuoku, concerns different conduct and a different period, and remains ongoing before the courts. It is referenced here only as institutional background to Nwabuoku's tenure as Acting Accountant-General, and no finding in either case should be read across to the other.
What happens next
Nwabuoku remains in custody serving his sentence. His appeal against conviction continues before the Court of Appeal, Abuja; no date for its determination has been reported.
