LAGOS JULY 15TH (NEWSRANGERS)-The news of the arrest of Adeniyi Adeyemi, the Director-General of the fake Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) broke on Tuesday few hours after a Federal High Court in Abuja ordered his arrest.
Adeyemi was smoked out and arrested from his hideout in Osun State by operatives of the Intelligence Response Team from Abuja.
“He was picked up in the early hours by operatives of the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT),” the spokesperson of Osun Police Command, DSP Biodun Ojelabi told News Agency of Nigeria.
He did not provide further details on the arrest behind one of the biggest scandals that has rocked the Nigerian bureaucracy in recent times
Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja had on Tuesday issued an arrest warrant against Adeniyi Adeyemi following an oral application by counsel for the police, Wisdom Madaki.
The application followed failure of Adeyemi to appear in court for his arraignment.
Adeyemi and his co-defendants were scheduled to take their plea in the eight-count charge preferred against them by the police.
The police, in the fresh court document marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/562/2025, charged the defendants on allegations bordering on forgery, impersonation, among others.
While the Federal Republic of Nigeria is listed as the complainant, Adeyemi, Femi Surname Unknown” and “Anu Surname Unknown” were named as first to third suspects.
The charge was filed on Nov. 27, 2025, by Wisdom.
When the case was called, none of the suspects were in court.
Madaki then applied to the court to issue a bench warrant for Adeyemi’s arrest following his absence.
Responding to the application, Adeyemi’s lawyer, Genesis Francis, told the court that his client feared for his life and had written a letter to President Bola Tinubu.
He added that Adeyemi wants to stay alive to face his trial.
After taking arguments from the lawyers, Justice Umar directed all security agencies to arrest Adeyemi anywhere he is sighted.
Judge adjourned the case until Sept. 30 for arraignment.
On June 16 when the case came up for the suspects to take their plea, Adeyemi was said to be indisposed and Justice Umar adjourned the matter.
According to the court documents, witnesses listed in the case are the Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila; Paul Emmanuel, Jeremiah Imoukhede and Ituah Sylvester.
Other witnesses are civil servants working in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (AGoF), Akimbo Shola and DSP Adamu Balongu ++were in the list.
Also listed as witnesses are Ojo Victor, Omeh Amarachukwu, and Wakili Saidu, all of whom were allegedly posted to work with Adeyemi at the non-existent agency.
Others are Mrs Joy Ngwoke, the owner of Kachi Hotel in Abuja, and Ven Okoriko, the pastor of St. Matthew’s Anglican Church, Maitama.
The documentary evidence expected to be tendered by the police include the police investigation report, Gbajabiamila’s petition dated Oct. 17, 2025; and Adeyemi’s fake presidential appointment letter dated March 8, 2024.
These also include the request for a note verbally by Adeyemi sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the approvals he got to open accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), request for approval of self-accounting Adeyemi sent to the AGoF and the conveyance of approval for take-off of the PFIPC.
Other documents listed by the prosecution are a letter of request for collaboration with the ministry in the area of land acquisition and offices across the 36 states of the federation; statements of all the witnesses and that of the defendants, and pictures.
The police, in the court document, said “the prosecution shall during the trial call any other related witness or witnesses to prove its case.”
Adeyemi was alleged to have operated the fictitious agency from the 2nd Floor of the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja, Phase III, before his arrest.
President Tinubu had, on July 7, directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to conduct a thorough investigation into the activities of the fictitious agency.
The president gave the ICPC 30 days to complete the investigation.
The News
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