US Court slams Larmode and Adefuye for Ugwuonye
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- Category: Latest
- Published on Monday, 17 September 2012 21:29
- Written by Elombah.com
For failing to enter appearance in a civil suit instituted against them, a US court has ordered that application for default judgement be commenced against Nigerian Ambassador to the United States, Mr Adebowale Adefuye, and the Chairman of the Economic Crimes and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr Ibrahim Lamorde. Adefuye
and Lamorde were slammed with a $75 million suit by US based Nigerian lawyer, Ephraim Emeka Ugwuonye, who is the plaintiff.
The US Court was apparanetly ruling on a Motion on Notice filed by Ugwuonye last week on 6th September 2012 in response to a court direction on method of service employed by plaintiff on the defendants. Today being Monday, 17 September 2012, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia then asked Ugwuonye to commence application for default against the plaintiffs for failing to enter appearance and ruled as follows:
ORDER. As set forth more fully herein, to the extent Ugwuonye believes that Adefuye and Lamorde are in default, by no later than October 10, 2012, he shall file an application for entry of default and default judgment. Any such application must, inter alia, provide an adequate evidentiary and legal basis for the Court to conclude that he has properly served Adefuye and Lamorde pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(e)(2)(C) and that the Court has personal jurisdiction over Adefuye and Lamorde. Further, the Clerk of the Court shall mail a copy of this Order to Ugwuonye at his address of record. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on September 17, 2012."
The action arose from a Complaint by the plaintiff against Ambassador Adebowale Ibidapo Adefuye, Ibrahim Lamorde, Farida Waziri, Ahmad Abdurrahman, Abdul Suleiman, Olufemi Babafemi, Festus Keyamo, and T. Michael Guiffre (jointly referred to as the Defendants), seeking damages for assault, crimes against humanity, violations of civil and human rights, torture, illegal rendition, abuse of court process and conspiracy, committed by the Defendants and their agents; and also acting in concert with, aiding, abetting, facilitating, soliciting, directing, orchestrating and conspiring with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the State Security Service (SSS) of Nigeria, and their collaborators in those atrocities; in violation of the Law of Nations, international law, the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the laws of the United States of America and of individual states, including but not limited to the District of Columbia, and the natural laws of man.
Ibrahim Lamorde, Executive Chairman, EFCC speaking to Mr Segun Aina, OFR, FCIB, President/Chairman of Council, CIBN who led Executive members of the Council on a courtesy visit to the EFCC’s Headquarters in Abuja, recently.
There have been a lot of discussions on the internet over the propriety or otherwise of service of summons and complaints in the matter that Mr. Ugwuonye filed against some Nigerian Government officials.
In issue was whether the court summons served on the Nigerian Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Adebowale Ibidapo Adefuye and EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde at a Security Conference holding at US peace Institute in Washington DC constitutes good service.
In an earlier court motion, the court had ordered the Plaintiff to file a notice with the Court: (1) identifying the method of service upon which he relies in serving Adefuye and Lamorde and (2) explaining why his attempted service upon Adefuye and Lamorde is effective.
In his notice in response filed on September 7, Mr Ugwuonye claimed that the Defendants have been aware that the lawsuit has been filed against them.
He stated: “They have the opportunity to challenge service of summons if that was their intention. But they did not do that. Instead, the Defendants sponsored certain individuals in or from Nigeria to subject the Plaintiff to Internet bullying in a calculated effort to force plaintiff to withdraw this suit".
Ugwuonye added: "(C) Specifically on the acts of bullying and intimidation, which is the way Defendants have chosen to respond to the filing of this suit, Ambassador Adefuye and Ibrahim Lamorde recruited some individuals to publish malicious propaganda regarding this case. Their efforts are geared toward using such bullying method to subdue the Plaintiff. Even though neither Adefuye nor Lamorde has entered their appearance in this case, they have routinely obtained every document filed in this case and every order made by this court; and they have used both the documents and orders for malicious propaganda activity, in which they distorted the contents of the documents and the rulings by this court.”
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