A former Minister if Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, is getting a threat from a Justice after he ahs refused to show up for a court case against him.Â
The man, who is now a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is being tried for violating 12 counts, including using forged documents and using manufactured evidence.
Also added to his alleged crime is getting documents executed under false pretenses, and falsifying evidence.
Several times, he has missed appearing in court, and the court is threatening to hang a wanted man’s emblem on him.
Justice Olubumni Abike-Fadipe of the Special Offenses Court in Ikeja, Lagos State, issued the threat, warning that he would follow through “if Fani-Kayode fails to show up for his trial on the forgery charge on the next postponed date”.
Fani-Kayode frequently fails to show up in court, according to Justice Abike-Fadipe, who noted that the last time he appeared in court for the trial was on November 4, 2022.
Absence To Court TrialsÂ
He initially entered a “not guilty” plea to the charge on December 17, 2021; however, since his arrest and the start of the trial, he has missed at least three adjournment dates, which the judge disapproved of.
According to reports, Fani-Kayode’s attorney, Wale Balogun, told the court at the most recent postponed date of his absence due to illness and other problems he was alleged to have had with the Department of State Services (DSS).
When the case was called on Wednesday, Chinozo Eze, the defendant’s attorney, informed the court that Fani-Kayode wasn’t in court due to health issues.
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Balogun had pleaded with the court to grant him an adjournment with the promise to have Fani-Kayode available at the proceeding on Wednesday.
Eze informed the court that a medical report and a letter requesting the court’s permission to change the two hearing dates were already on file.
Zeenat Atiku, the attorney for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), confirmed the situation and claimed that the prosecution’s options are limited.
Court Threaten Bench Warrant
However, Justice Abike-Fadipe disapproved of Fani-Kayode’s repeated justifications for failing to appear in court.
As a result, the judge threatened to issue a bench warrant for the minister’s arrest if he did not show up for the next delayed date.
Justice Abike-Fadipe also criticised the prosecutor for not vigorously pursuing the case, stating that the EFCC might drop the case if it was not yet prepared to pursue it.
The judge then postponed the case to November 7, 2023, so that the trial may continue.
