Canada court rejects N155million bail offer by Nigerian accused of fraud in America
The Court of Appeal of Ontario in Canada has rejected a N155 million bail bond offered by a Nigerian, Adeyanju Olaniran, pending appeal ahead of his extradition to the United States of America (USA).
Penpushing reports that Olaniran alongside fellow Nigerian, Timothy Balogun and other person Rachel O’Connor were earlier ordered remanded in detention under s. 29 of the Extradition Act, S.C. 1999, c. 18 by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, presided over by Justice J. Mirza, pending their handing over to the American by the Canadian government over alleged fraud.
The accused were alleged to have been declared wanted by the State of Arkansas in America over their involvement in a conspiracy to fraudulently acquire medical supplies from distributors and their client pharmacies.
Penpushing reports that the court documents stated that the accused, were specifically alleged to have worked together to arrange to intercept and obtain the shipped medical supplies using couriers.
The document added that their unlawfully acquired supplies were resold for profit and these proceeds were sent digitally to bank accounts controlled by some of the Respondents, alleging that dozens of United States of America (USA) based pharmacies and medical supply distributors including Company 1, Company 2, and Company 3, suffered losses.
Penpushing further reports that Justice Mirza, after rejecting the pleadings of the three accused persons, declared that he was satisfied that there was significant circumstance evidence and direct evidence that each of the respondents involved in the fraud scheme
: “I am satisfied that the (sic) there is significant circumstantial evidence and direct evidence from which a trier of fact could reasonably infer identity for each of the Respondents’ involvement in the fraud scheme’, he said.
‘In other words, the evidence proffered by the requesting state in these proceedings meets the test for committal by establishing sufficient evidence for committal that Balogun, O’Connor and Olaniyan are the persons who engaged in the alleged fraud over five thousand dollars. I therefore order that all of the Respondents, Balogun, O’Connor and Olaniyan, be committed into custody to await surrender, pursuant to s. 29 of the Act’, he declared
Penpushing also reports that Olaniran, however, was dissatisfied with the judgment, and headed to the appeal court requesting it to grant him interim release, which was opposed by Canada’s Minister of Justice.
The Appeal Court judge, P. Lauwers, rejected the plea in the claim United States v. Olaniyan, 2025 ONCA 542 (CanLII), and accepted the Crown argument that, based on the violation of his previous bail conditions, Olaniyan should not be granted bail as he remains a flight risk.
Penpushing reports that the court equally rejected the $140,000 (N155 million) offered for Olaniyan’s bail by three sureties, declaring that more is required for him (Olaniyan) to establish that his grounds for appeal meet the “not frivolous” test
“More is required for Mr. Olaniyan to establish that his grounds for appeal meet the “not frivolous” test than a general attack of the sort he advances, which amounts to not much more than a general denial that any accused might make’
‘Taken together, Mr. Olaniyan has not established he is not a flight risk, taking into account the serious charges he faces, his prior conduct, and inadequate bail conditions’, the judge stressed
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