Court Dismisses FG’s Request To Arrest Senator Natasha Akpoti

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday turned down a request by the Federal Government to order the arrest of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan after she failed to attend the start of her defamation trial.

The case is being pursued by the Federal Government on behalf of Senate President Godswill Akpabio and ex-Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello.

During the hearing on Monday, the government’s lawyer, David Kaswe, told the court the matter was slated for arraignment, but the defendant was absent.

He argued that since the charge had been delivered to her legal team, she was aware of the case and had no excuse for not showing up.

Kaswe urged the judge, Justice Musa Umar to issue a bench warrant for Natasha Akpoti’s arrest.

He said, “It was this morning that we were able to serve the defendant through her counsel but the defendant is not in court.

“So, it means the defendant is aware of this matter but decided not to appear in court, in the light of this, I apply that a bench warrant be issued against her for failure to attend court to take her plea in this criminal charge.”

However, Akpoti-Uduaghan’s lawyer, Jacob Usman (SAN), challenged the move, saying he had only just received the court papers at 9:15 a.m inside the courtroom—right before the session began.

Usman questioned how his client could possibly have known to appear in court when she hadn’t even seen the charge until that morning.

“I was served the charge at 9:15am this morning here in court so how will the defendant know that the matter is coming up when she has not seen the charge?

“I find the application strange and it should be dishonoured, if the defendant has not been served, she cannot be in court,” he said.

He described the prosecution’s request as both inappropriate and disrespectful, praying the court to dis-countenance the application as it was made in bad taste.

In response, Justice Umar asked the prosecutor directly whether the defendant had been personally served with the charge, and Kaswe admitted she had not.

Given that admission, the judge ruled that it would be unjust to approve a warrant for Natasha Akpoti’s arrest.

He granted the application that allows the prosecution to serve Akpoti-Uduaghan through her lawyer, which Kaswe had asked for later in the proceedings.

Justice Umar adjourned the matter to June 30, 2025, for arraignment.

The lawsuit stems from remarks Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan allegedly made during a live TV program on April 3, 2025.

During the broadcast, she reportedly accused Akpabio and Bello of plotting to assassinate her, comments the prosecution argues were defamatory.

KanyiDaily recalls that the Court of Appeal in Abuja recently dismissed two motions filed by Godswill Akpabio and ordered him to pay ₦100,000 in costs.