A Nigerian court on Friday deferred a ruling to November 23 in the trial of the former governor of oil-rich Delta State, James Ibori, accused of stealing millions of dollars during his tenure, reports the AFP.

The court had planned to decide on whether to strike out the suit against the former governor or not.

“Although the matter is slated for ruling today, because of some issues which arose between the last adjournment date and now, I will deliver the ruling on the 23rd of November,” judge Marcel Awokulehin of Federal High Court Asaba said.

Although the judge did not disclose the exact reasons for the adjournment, court officials said the decision could be connected with an ongoing strike by judicial workers in the state.

Federal prosecutors slammed a 170-count charge against the flamboyant Ibori after his arrest in December 2007 in Abuja by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

He was later granted bail after meeting some stringent terms, including payment of a 50-million-naira (330,000 dollars / 222,000 euros) bond and depositing his travel documents to the court.

Wearing a green kaftan, the former governor was driven to the court in a navy blue Range Rover jeep.

The trial which began in January 2008 in the northern city of Kaduna was transferred to Asaba, the capital of Delta State at the instance of Ibori, who cited security concerns.

There was a heavy police presence around the court premises Friday as the former governor stood in the dock.

Ibori’s leading counsel Ken Mozea said he was hopeful his client would be discharged and acquitted of the charges.

“There is no concrete evidence to support the charges,” he told AFP.

Ibori, who ruled Delta State from 1999 to 2007, has also been under investigation by the British police following the discovery of assets in the country suspected to have been acquired with stolen money.

His trial in London, with his alleged accomplice Udoamaka Okonkwo, was suspended because of the Nigerian case.

The Southwark Crown Court adjourned sitting in London to enable the Asaba court to conclude its hearing, on the grounds that the outcome of the case in Nigeria have a bearing on the London trial.

In his eight years as governor, Ibori’s annual salary was less than 25,000 dollars (17,000 euros), yet he was able to transfer millions of dollars to British bank accounts, media reports said.

A British court had frozen 35 million dollars worth of his assets, according to the British media.