A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja, on Thursday, April 16, 2026, ordered the arrest of a former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar-Farouq, and a Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Bashir Nura Alkali, over an alleged $1.3 million and N746 million fraud.
Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie issued the arrest warrant, according to a statement by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
According to the Commission, Umar-Farouq and Alkali were scheduled for arraignment before the court on Thursday but failed to appear, while only the third defendant, Sani Nafiu Mohammed, was present.
What They Said
At the resumed proceedings, prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, informed the court that the charge had been filed since December 15, 2025, but the ex-minister and the permanent secretary could not initially be served.
- “We could not arraign them on December 15 because we could not produce them, but their lawyers in court promised that they would produce the defendants. However, we did not see them until your lordship made an order for substituted service. The defendants have now been served, my lord. Only the third defendant has reported to the Commission after his surety was contacted. The third defendant’s surety is also in court,” he said.
Jacobs further told the court that the ex-minister had written to the Commission stating that she was travelling to Saudi Arabia for a medical check-up in 2024, and her passport was released to her for that purpose.
He explained that since the passport was released, she has allegedly not returned it to the Commission.
He also stated that the Commission has not received any medical report from Saudi Arabia to date.
- “Only this morning, my learned friend served me with an affidavit of facts filed by the learned senior counsel for the first defendant, wherein the deponent claimed that the first defendant took ill. My lord, all the medical reports attached to the affidavit were issued after the charge had been filed. No medical report was issued or shown to us for the approved journey and the release of her passport,” he added.
Counsel to Umar-Farouq, Abdul Ibrahim, SAN, informed the court that her absence was due to ill health. He urged the court to accept an affidavit of facts to that effect.
However, the court rejected the application, according to the EFCC.
Following the court’s rejection of the affidavit, Jacobs informed the court that the EFCC sought to amend an ex parte motion filed on February 16, 2026, to apply only to the first and second defendants.
He also urged the court to issue a bench warrant against them.
- “We are praying your lordship to issue a warrant of arrest against the first and second defendants.
- “It is supported by an affidavit deposed to by one Celeb Peter on April 15, 2026, showing that the first and second defendants were granted bail but failed to report back, and that the charge had been filed and served on them, yet they failed to appear before the court today.
- “It is therefore imperative for this honourable court to permit the Commission to arrest the first and second defendants so that they can be compelled to appear before the court,” he said.
However, defence counsel urged the court to allow him to produce the ex-minister within six weeks.
In his ruling, Justice Onwuegbuzie issued a warrant of arrest against the first and second defendants—the ex-minister and the permanent secretary.
The judge adjourned the matter until May 18, 2026, for arraignment and trial.
Backstory
According to the EFCC, the defendants are accused of breach of trust, abuse of office, fraudulent award of contracts, and conversion of public funds amounting to about $1,300,000 and N746,574,303.
This led to the filing of a criminal charge against them.
They were alleged to have fraudulently converted the said sum for personal benefit. The funds were meant to be refunded to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development by Visual ICT Limited, being excess funds paid under the National Social Safety Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO) for the validation of Rapid Response Register beneficiaries.
The EFCC stated that the alleged offences contravene Section 315 of the Penal Code and are punishable under the same section.
What You Should Know
In 2024, Sadiya Umar-Farouq reportedly appeared at the headquarters of the EFCC over allegations of fraud.
- She was to undergo interrogation as part of an investigation into the alleged laundering of N37.10 billion during her tenure, with the funds reportedly routed through a contractor, James Okwete.
- In an earlier post on X, the former minister denied the allegations, stating that she never worked with an agent named James Okwete and described reports linking her to him as spurious.
- It remains for the court to determine the merits or otherwise of the EFCC’s allegations against the ex-minister and others.
