By Omobolaji Oyegunle, London British Crown Prosecution Service, CPS, on Thursday, withdrawn the case of attempt to pervert the course of Justice filed against Gohil Bhadresh, counsel to a former Governor of oil-rich Delta state, south south Nigeria.
Appearing at Southwark Crown Court, London, lead prosecution counsel for Crown Prosecution Service Sasha Wass QC stated that the British government was no longer interested in prosecuting James Ibori’s solicitor Bhadresh, on the ground that the Crown Prosecution Counsel had found out that he was not guilty of the charge they have brought against him.
‘We are no longer interested in pursuing this case against Mr Gohil Bhadresh, we could not establish any evidence against him that he is guilty’.
Speaking further, the Crown Prosecution lead Counsel Sasha Wass said “My Lord, we will like to withdraw the case against Gohil Bhadresh’.
The former Delta State Governor James Ibori’s solicitor, Gohil Bhadresh, had appealed against his conviction in the case against him on the ground that the British Crown Prosecution Service had lied to the Crown court, fraudulently obtained evidence against him and that the Metropolitan Police investigating officer corruptly enriched himself by obtaining bribes in the case. The appeal court however struck out Gohil’s appeal for lack of evidence.
The Crown Prosecution Service thereafter charged Bharedsh for attempt to pervert the course of Justice and blackmail the police.
In a sudden turn of event, having discovered that the case the Crown Prosecution Service had brought against Bhardresh would give him access to classified information which the Crown Prosecution Service had kept secret and had not allowed anyone access to including the bank details of the British Metropolitan Police investigating officer accused in Gohil’s appeal case, the Crown Prosecution Service, Thursday morning at the resumed hearing of the case, announced their withdrawal.
Speaking after the CPS’s withdrawal from the case Gohil Bradresh said “we have not seen the end of this case, we will appeal the conviction and prove that the conviction was based on false evidence”.
He continued ‘they charged me to court and they withdrew because now their case against me was to give me open access to their files and sources of their evidence including their officers’ bank details which they can’t stand because it was false and corruptly obtained.”
