A bench warrant has been issued for the arrest of ex-Minister Sadiya Umar Farouq and former Permanent Secretary Bashir Nura Alkali after they snubbed a court appearance on Thursday in Abuja.
The FCT High Court move comes as the EFCC prepares to prosecute them for a multimillion-dollar contract fraud involving over N746 million and $1.3 million in public funds.
Despite the 21-count charge hanging over them, only the third defendant, Sani Nafiu Mohammed, showed up for the trial, leading Justice Onwuegbuzie to order the immediate arrest of the missing officials.
Count one of the charge reads: “That you Sadiya Umar Farouq, While being Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, and Bashir Nura Alkali while being the permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, between 8 May 2021 and 22 September 2022, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, and in such capacity entrusted with certain property to wit, an aggregate sum of $1,300,000.00(One Million, Three Hundred Thousand Dollars), committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property when you fraudulently converted the said sum to your personal benefit and which sum was meant to be refunded to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development by Visual ICT Limited, being excess funds paid by the Ministry under National Social Safety Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO) for the validation of Rapid Response Register beneficiaries and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 315 of the Penal Code and Punishable under the same Section.”
Prosecution counsel, Mr. Rotimi Jacobs, (SAN) informed the court that the charge had been filed since December 15, 2025, but the first and second defendants could not be served.
“We could not arraign them on 15 December because we could not produce them but their lawyers in court promised that they would produce the defendants, but we didn’t see them until Your Lordship made an order for the state service.
“The defendants have now been served, my lord, only the third defendant has reported to the Commission when his surety was contacted. The third defendant’s surety is also in court,” he told the court.
Rotimi further informed the court the first defendant wrote to the Commission that she was going for a medical check-up in Saudi Arabia in 2024 and her passport was released to her for the medical check-up.
“My Lord, since that passport was released to her, she has not returned the passport to the Commission. We do not have the medical report in Saudi Arabia till date.
“Only this morning, my friend served me with an affidavit of fact, the learned senior counsel for the first defendant, wherein the deponent claimed that the first defendant took ill.
“My Lord, all the medical reports which my friend attached to the affidavit of facts 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 said.
Counsel to the first defendant, Mr. Abdul Ibrahim (SAN), also told the court that the reason for her absence was ill health. He also prayed the court to accept an affidavit of fact he sought to tender, but the court rejected the application.
Jacobs indicated that the EFCC wanted to amend an ex-parte motion filed on February 16, 2026, which sought to limit the application to only the first and second defendants.
He further urged the court to issue a warrant of arrest against the first and second defendants.
Ruling on the applications, Justice Onwuegbuzie issued a bench warrant against the first and second defendants.
The case has been adjourned until May 18, 2026, for arraignment and trial.
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