Former federal lawmaker Senator Dino Melaye was acquitted on Monday in the twelfth legal case the federal government brought against him.
Justice Sylvanus Oriji of the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, cleared Melaye of charges related to providing false information about an alleged assassination attempt in 2017.
The case, which has spanned six years, began in February 2018 when Melaye was accused of falsely implicating Edward Onoja, the then Chief of Staff to Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, in an assassination conspiracy.
After the ruling, Melaye celebrated the decision on social media, expressing gratitude to his legal team and reaffirming his faith in divine justice. “Justice delayed is never justice denied,” he wrote, adding, “God alone is praised. SEN. DINO MELAYE 12—FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND IGP 0.12 CASES ALL WON BY GOD.”
The legal battle experienced significant delays, including the sudden passing of Justice Aromeh Benson Akogu, who initially presided over the case and passed away on December 31, 2017.
The charges were officially filed against Melaye by the Attorney General’s Office on January 31, 2018, after an investigation into the assassination plot in his hometown of Ayetoro-Gbede, Kogi State.
Melaye had pleaded not guilty since the case’s onset in March 2018. Over the years, he continued to allege threats to his life, with the most recent claim in March 2019 accusing the Kogi State government of conspiracy, a claim the state officials denied.
