Justice Ahmed Ramat Mohammed of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has withdrawn from the on-going trial of former Benue State governor, Dr. Gabriel Suswam over an alleged N3.1billion fraud, money laundering and breach of trust.
The Judge withdrew on Monday from the trial in protest following an allegation by an online medium, the Sahara Reporters, that the Judge has been compromised by the former governor to give judgment in his favour.
At the resumed trial, Justice Mohammed raised the issue of publication by Sahara Reporters and the allegation, which he said, has brought disrepute to his image and that of the Federal High Court as an institution in the eyes of ordinary Nigerians.
The Judge added that the court is now caught in between two devils because wherever the pendulum of his decision swings, the issue of the publication can be used to justify or rubbish the outcome of the trial.
He stated that it is in the interest of justice that he steps down from the trial for another Judge to adjudicate the trial in the interest of the public interest.
