By SaharaReporters, New York
“We absolutely have proof that Mr. Ibori is hiding some assets,” said the source, adding, “and we believe he should not be allowed to get away with it.”
Yesterday, Judge Anthony Pitts of the Southwark Crown Court granted a request by UK prosecutors to provide more detailed evidence of Mr. Ibori’s assets by allowing the case to start afresh. But as soon as the order was granted, former Governor Ibori’s lawyers and his propaganda machine went to town claiming a victory. But a London-based legal analyst who has monitored the case told SaharaReporters that the judge’s ruling “cannot in any way be construed as a victory for the jailed governor.”
In fact, the source added that the ruling “amounts to a jeopardy for Ibori’s lawyers.” He explained: “The defense lawyers had hoped for a ruling based on the trajectory of their defense, which was that Mr. Ibori doesn’t have to appear in court and that the court should not use his admittance of guilt as a basis for the confiscation hearing. However, if new evidence is presented by the Crown prosecution, Ibori will either have to take to the witness dock to refute the evidence or allow the evidence to be admitted unchallenged. That’s a potentially big blow to his case.”
The analyst remarked: “If Ibori refuses to show up in court, the new evidence becomes admissible without challenge. That further complicates his case because the Crown [prosecutors] could then further allege that he lied to the court. That could allow them to demand additional jail time for him. Such an outcome could also decimate his goodwill with the prison authorities with regard to ‘good conduct’ that could have mitigated his prison term…………..
