The Federal High Court in Abuja has issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, the self-proclaimed Director-General of the “non-existent” Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC). Justice Mohammed Umar ordered security agencies to apprehend Adeyemi after he failed to appear in court for his scheduled arraignment on an eight-count criminal charge. The order was granted following an oral application by the police prosecution counsel, Wisdom Madaki, who complained that the defendant had repeatedly stalled the trial by failing to appear on multiple consecutive court dates.
During the proceedings, defense counsel Genesis Francis pleaded with the court to overlook his client’s absence, explaining that Adeyemi was currently in hiding due to serious threats to his life. The lawyer revealed that the defendant had written an open letter to President Bola Tinubu regarding the safety concerns, stressing that Adeyemi only wanted to “stay alive” to face his trial. Justice Umar, however, dismissed the excuse and remarked that the court would “help him to be alive” by placing him in the custody of law enforcement, subsequently adjourning the case to September 30, 2026.
The legal troubles for Adeyemi began after the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, petitioned security agencies to investigate the operations of the purported presidential council. Investigators subsequently arrested Adeyemi at an unauthorized office space he allegedly set up inside the Federal Secretariat complex in Abuja. The prosecution alleges that the entire agency was a sophisticated scam designed to mislead government departments and the public.
The eight-count charge filed against the defendant includes serious allegations of conspiracy, fraud, impersonation, and forgery. Specifically, the government accuses Adeyemi of forging presidential letterheads, a fake economic advisory council take-off approval, and a presidential appointment letter bearing the forged signatures of President Tinubu and his Chief of Staff. If convicted on the forgery-related counts, the defendant faces a maximum penalty of up to 21 years in prison.
This News Central TV report on the PFIPC forgery charges provides essential context on the initial criminal counts filed by the Nigeria Police Force when the fake agency scandal first came to light.
