Halima Buba, the Managing Director of SunTrust Bank Ltd, has approached the Federal High Court in Abuja for permission to travel to the United States over alleged pregnancy-related health complications.
Buba, who is standing trial alongside Innocent Mbagwu, the bank’s Executive Director and Chief Compliance Officer, is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over an alleged $12 million fraud.
The defendants were arraigned on July 13, 2025, and granted N100 million bail each with one surety in like sum. As part of the bail conditions, their international passports were deposited with the court.
At Thursday’s proceedings before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja, Buba, through her counsel, Johnson Usman (SAN), filed a motion seeking a variation of her bail terms to enable the temporary release of her passport for medical treatment abroad.
In her application, she told the court that she is pregnant and experiencing complications requiring urgent specialist attention.
She stated that after registering for antenatal care at Deda Hospital in Abuja, she was referred to a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at Indiana University Health in Carmel, Indiana, United States.
Buba assured the court that she had complied with all previous bail conditions, attended court sessions consistently, and would return to Nigeria upon completion of her treatment.
However, the EFCC, through its counsel Ogechi Ujam, opposed the application, describing the claims as misleading and speculative.
The prosecution argued that there was no evidence showing that her medical condition could not be managed within Nigeria’s healthcare system.
The anti-graft agency further contended that no concrete medical appointment had been confirmed abroad and warned that granting the request could create a risk of flight, especially given the seriousness of the charges and the stage of the trial.
According to the EFCC, three prosecution witnesses have already testified, presenting what it described as substantial incriminating evidence against the defendants.
After hearing arguments from both parties, Justice Nwite adjourned the matter until March 4 for ruling on the application.
