MarshalAbubakar, the defence counsel representing popular blogger and social media influencer Justice Mark Chidiebere, also known as Justice Crack, has withdrawn his bail application in the ongoing cybercrime trial
Justice Crack was brought before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday over allegations that he incited soldiers to create disaffection within the Nigerian Army.
The hearing, which had earlier been fixed for May 25, was brought forward for an accelerated sitting.
At the resumed proceedings, a lawyer from the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation announced appearance for the prosecution, informing the court that the AGF had taken over the case.
However, the session took a dramatic turn when two lawyers, Olufemi Balogun and Marshal Abubakar, both stood up to announce appearance for the defendant. Abubakar maintained that he was still the counsel on record from the last adjourned date, while Balogun informed the court he had been newly briefed to take over the defence.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik then sought clarification from the defendant on who was representing him, and Justice Crack identified Balogun as his lawyer.
Following this development, Abubakar formally withdrew from the case along with the bail application he had previously filed. The withdrawal left the bail request unresolved, as it was the only application pending before the court.
Balogun subsequently informed the court that a fresh bail application would be filed.
Justice Abdulmalik adjourned the matter to May 18 for hearing and directed the prosecution to open its case on that date, warning that failure to do so could lead to the case being struck out for lack of diligent prosecution.
After the court session, supporters and associates of Justice Crack reportedly confronted Abubakar over his decision to withdraw from the matter.
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