Oladipupo Adebutu, the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate in Ogun State in 2023, and five others faced Justice Abiodun Akinyemi of the state High Court, Kobape Road, Abeokuta on Tuesday over a seven-count charge of vote buying and other offences in case number AB/10c/2023 (FRN Vs Adebutu &Ors)
Security agents accused Adebutu and other PDP members of inducement during the governorship election on March 18, 2023.
He allegedly instructed his bank to issue 200,000 ATM verve cards preloaded with N10,000 and distributed them on the election day throughout the state to influence voters.
The police later arraigned Adebutu and six others in court, but he travelled abroad for medical reasons and came back in December 2023.
Adebutu, who made his first physical appearance in court, denied the charges against him.
Mr Rotimi Jacobs SAN, the prosecuting counsel, withdrew the previous information he provided and replaced it with a revised one, with no objection from the defendants’ lead counsel, Gordy Uche SAN.
Uche asked the court to let the defendants keep enjoying bail on the same terms. He also requested the court to grant Adebutu bail on self-recognition, saying he voluntarily came to the court.
But the prosecuting counsel, Mr Rotimi Jacobs SAN, opposed his request for self-recognition bail, saying he had no problem with the bail request, but he did not agree with the self-recognition part.
Justice Abiodun Akinyemi, the presiding judge, granted Adebutu bail for N1m with a surety who could be a relative or a bondsman.
The hearing will continue on Wednesday, February 7, 2024.