The self-acclaimed Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, failed to appear before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday for his scheduled arraignment over allegations bordering on certificate forgery, fraud and impersonation.
Adeyemi was expected to take his plea before Justice Mohammed Umar on an eight-count charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/562/2025. However, despite the matter being listed as No. 12 on the court’s cause list, the defendant was absent when the case was called.
The charges against Adeyemi and two other defendants were filed on November 27, 2025, by police prosecutor Wisdom Madaki. The prosecution accuses the defendants of offences relating to alleged forgery, fraud and impersonation.
Among the witnesses expected to testify during the trial are the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila; Paul Emmanuel; Jeremiah Imoukhede; and Ituah Sylvester. Also listed as prosecution witnesses are civil servants from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF), Akimbo Shola and Adamu Balongu, as well as a Deputy Superintendent of Police.
Adeyemi’s absence comes a day after he granted an interview on Channels Television, where he insisted that he was not evading law enforcement authorities but had withdrawn from public view because of alleged threats to his life.
He dismissed suggestions that he was hiding to avoid investigation into the alleged PFIPC fraud, maintaining that his safety was the reason for staying out of the public eye.
During the interview, Adeyemi also repeated his allegation that he paid ₦400 million through a proxy to President Bola Tinubu’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, to secure his appointment as Director-General of the disputed agency.
He further claimed that individuals from whom he borrowed the money had subsequently reported him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the debt.
The allegations made by Adeyemi against the Chief of Staff have not been established in court, and no judicial finding has been made regarding the claims. Meanwhile, authorities continue with the prosecution over the charges of alleged certificate forgery, fraud and impersonation.
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