Judge threatens arrest warrant for former NNPC cooperative president

Justice Lesley Wike of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja has threatened to issue an arrest warrant against Olalekan Ogunbayo, the former President of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Staff Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society. The threat follows Ogunbayo’s failure to appear in court for the third time to take a plea regarding alleged ₦582 million fraud charges.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) informed the court that Ogunbayo had jumped administrative bail and that efforts to locate him for service of the charge have been unsuccessful. The EFCC requested a bench warrant to facilitate his arrest and production in court, citing the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015.

Defense counsel Innocent Adoo opposed the warrant, arguing that a criminal trial cannot proceed without proper service of the charge to allow the defendant to prepare a defense. The defense claimed Ogunbayo was in Warri and unable to secure a flight to Abuja for the proceedings.