Visualising the 18.9x speed differential between plea bargain and full trial resolution across 7,167 financial crime cases.
Across all financial crime types, plea bargains deliver a dramatic time saving. But in cybercrime specifically, the gap narrows significantly. Both plea and non-plea cybercrime cases resolve quickly (median 6-7 days), suggesting that the EFCC high-volume cybercrime cases move fast regardless of plea mechanism.
The real question for crypto-crime jurisprudence: is the speed gain worth the precedent loss? Each plea bargain that bypasses full trial is a missed opportunity for judicial interpretation.
Source: Project THEMIS case database (n=7,167 financial crime cases, 96 crypto-related). Methodology details available at themis.ng/methodology.