Former Minister of Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, was reportedly arrested on Wednesday at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, where he was said to be preparing to board a chartered flight to Abuja.
Key Highlights:
Sources at the airport, said the former minister was taken into custody and is expected to be handed over to the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) for questioning over allegations of certificate forgery.
The reported arrest comes weeks after the Federal High Court reportedly granted the ICPC permission to arrest and investigate Nnaji over the allegations.
The court also authorised the anti-graft agency to declare him wanted through newspapers, social media platforms and other media channels after the commission alleged that he repeatedly failed to honour invitations for questioning.
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According to the ICPC, its application to the court followed Nnaji’s alleged refusal to appear before investigators, despite several invitations relating to the forgery allegations.
The case stems from a two-year investigation published by Premium Times in October last year, which alleged that Nnaji submitted forged University of Nigeria, Nsukka, degree and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificates during his ministerial screening and confirmation process in 2023.
The report alleged that the documents were presented to President Bola Tinubu, the Senate, the office of the secretary to the government of the federation and the Department of State Services (DSS).
According to the publication, Nnaji later acknowledged that the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, did not issue him the degree certificate in question, a development the newspaper said corroborated its investigation.
The former minister had previously denied the existence of the court order authorising his arrest, dismissing the publication as a “media trial.”
However, on June 18, he reportedly filed an appeal before the Court of Appeal, seeking to overturn the arrest order.
As of the time of filing this report, the ICPC had not issued an official statement confirming the reported arrest, while Nnaji’s legal team had yet to publicly respond to the latest development.
