Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered that two Chinese nationals be remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Services following their arraignment on charges related to illegal dealings in mineral resources.
The accused, Zhang Hong Lin and Zhao Pei Hai, were brought before the court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) facing a five-count charge of unlawful possession and exportation of mineral products.
The prosecution alleges that the defendants, together with an individual named Gao Pei Yu who is currently at large, engaged in illicit activities involving the export of various mineral resources out of Nigeria.
According to the prosecution, led by Bilkisu Buhari-Bala, these offences occurred in Lagos in 2025. The defendants were accused of exporting mica products, copper-bearing minerals, and lithium-bearing mineral resources with the intent to defraud the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Buhari-Bala further stated that these actions contravened Section 8(a) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act of 1983, which stipulates penalties for such offences under the same legal provision.
Upon being charged, both Zhang Hong Lin and Zhao Pei Hai pleaded not guilty to all allegations. Following their plea, the prosecutor urged the court to set a date for the trial to commence and recommended that the defendants be remanded in a correctional facility pending the proceedings.
The defence counsel, however, requested that the accused be remanded in the custody of the EFCC while their bail application was being considered. Justice Aneke rejected this request, emphasizing that the defendants should instead be held in a correctional centre.
Consequently, the court adjourned the case to July 4, 2025, for the start of the trial.