Nigerian prosecutors brought additional charges against alleged militant leader Henry Okah, prompting protests by defense lawyers, a court official said.
Salisu Aliyu, the director of public prosecutions, presented a new list of 62 charges of treason, terrorism and gun-running, seven more than were listed when Okah first appeared in court in April, said an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the trial is closed to the public.
Defense lawyers said the move was a delaying tactic and urged Presiding Judge Stephen Adah to overrule it and proceed with the hearing, the official said. The judge moved the case to July 18, when he will rule whether to allow the latest amendment to the charges.
Nigeria is Africa’s second-biggest oil producer. Okah, who was arrested in Angola on charges of gun-running in September, is alleged to be a leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, whose attacks have cut more than 20 percent of the country’s crude exports since 2006.
The militant group, also known as MEND, denies Okah was involved in arms trafficking, insisting he was in Angola to buy a trawler for his marine business.
Defense attorneys have begun an appeal process against a court ruling that Okah be tried in secret for fears a public trial may jeopardize national security, Wilson Ajuwa, one of his lawyers, said in an interview from Jos in central Nigeria, today.
While he confirmed Okah’s appearance in court today, Ajuwa declined to give further details citing the court’s gag order.