Court Denies FG’s Request to Arrest Senator Natasha Over Defamation Charges

The Federal High Court in Abuja has refused the Federal Government’s request to issue an arrest warrant for suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan over her failure to appear in court for arraignment in a criminal defamation case.

Justice Muhammed Umar gave the ruling on Monday after government counsel, David Kaswe, informed the court that the charge was served earlier that morning on Akpoti-Uduaghan’s lawyer inside the courtroom.

However, Justice Umar held that since the senator had not been previously served with the charge or a court hearing notice, it was unreasonable to expect her appearance in court. On this basis, the court rejected the prosecution’s request for a bench warrant.

The government lawyer argued that the senator ought to have been aware of the arraignment since her lawyer had been served. The judge disagreed, noting that service on counsel alone is not sufficient to assume the defendant’s personal awareness.

Following the court’s decision, the prosecution applied for a substituted service to be done through her legal representative, Johnson Usman. The court approved the application and rescheduled the arraignment for June 30.

The charge, filed by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mohammed Abubakar, accuses Akpoti-Uduaghan of making damaging remarks during a live broadcast on Channels Television’s Politics Today on April 3, 2025.

According to the Federal Government, she claimed that former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello and Senate President Godswill Akpabio conspired to assassinate her and disguise the act as a mob attack.

She reportedly said, “Let’s ask the Senate President, why in the first instance did he withdraw my security, if not to make me vulnerable to attacks? He then emphasised that I should be killed, but I should be killed in Kogi…”

In another instance cited in the suit, she allegedly claimed during a phone conversation on March 27 that organs from the late Iniubong Umoren were used to treat Akpabio’s wife—an accusation the government says was knowingly false and injurious to his reputation.

Both Akpabio and Bello have been listed as prosecution witnesses, along with four others.

The case is expected to continue on June 30.