Ibori accuses British prosecutors of witholding information

Lawyers representing former governor of Delta state, James Ibori, have accused Britain's prosecuting authorities of withholding information from them regarding alleged corruption by a British police officer who is involved in Ibori's investigation and also making misleading statements in court.

The lawyers made the allegations at the resumed hearing of the case against Ibori at the Crown Court, Southwark UK yesterday June 6th.

Ibori, who was Governor of Delta State from 1999 to 2007, is serving a 13 year sentence in a British jail after pleading guilty in 2012 to 10 counts of fraud and money laundering. Ibori's defence team applied for the presiding judge, Judge Tomlinson, to permanently halt court proceedings on the confiscation of Ibori’s assets, which has dragged on for many years.

The judge in his ruling, said taking such a decision would amount to a challenge on Ibori’s convictions, a matter that should probably be dealt with by the Court of Appeal, a higher court. He adjourned the case to tomorrow, Wednesday June 8th.