The Federal Government has moved the prosecution of Adeniyi Adeyemi, the alleged Director-General of the purported Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), from the Federal High Court to the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The development followed a review of the case by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, which reportedly identified legal issues with the charges initially filed against Adeyemi.
At the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday, October 12, the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, applied for the existing charges to be struck out to allow the prosecution to continue before the appropriate court.
Oyedepo explained that the alleged forged documents involved in the case fell within the jurisdiction of the FCT High Court rather than the Federal High Court.
He informed the court that fresh charges had already been filed before the FCT High Court and that the defendant would be arraigned again.
The prosecution consequently asked Justice Mohammed Umar to terminate the existing proceedings in line with the law.
Counsel to Adeyemi, Ibrahim Angulu, SAN, did not oppose the application.
Justice Umar subsequently granted the request and struck out the eight-count charge, paving the way for the case to proceed before the FCT High Court.
Adeyemi had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges, which include allegations of conspiracy and forgery relating to the purported government agency.
The allegations against him include the alleged forgery of presidential appointment letters, official State House documents and other correspondence purportedly issued by government authorities.
Adeyemi had been standing trial alongside two other defendants whose whereabouts remain unknown.
The fresh arraignment is expected to allow the Federal Government to pursue the allegations before the court it considers to have the appropriate jurisdiction.
The allegations remain unproven, and Adeyemi is presumed innocent unless convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction.
