IGP seeks bench warrant against FIJ founder Soyombo

The Inspector-General of Police has asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to issue a bench warrant for the arrest of the founder of the Foundation for Investigative Journalism, Fisayo Soyombo, over alleged cyberstalking and criminal defamation of a former Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals, Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire.

The request was, however, rejected by the court on Tuesday, with the presiding judge, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, holding that a bench warrant could not be issued against Soyombo because he had not previously been brought before the court.

The case, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/486/2024, involves Soyombo and an FIJ correspondent, Daniel Ojukwu, who is currently remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre, Abuja.

The defendants are facing a 12-count charge bordering on alleged cyberstalking and criminal defamation of Orelope-Adefulire, who served as Senior Special Assistant to former President Muhammadu Buhari on SDGs.

At the resumed proceedings, on Tuesday, the police prosecution team, lead by Kunle Lawal, leading Tolulope Osho, Grace Baiyeshea and Marvellous Orji, told the court that efforts to serve Soyombo had been unsuccessful and urged it to issue a bench warrant for his arrest.

However, counsel for the defendants, Oluseye Moore, opposed the request, arguing that Soyombo and Ojukwu had been granted administrative bail by the police while investigations were ongoing.

Moore said the police, having granted the defendants bail, were responsible for ensuring their attendance in court until they were formally charged, after which the court would determine their bail conditions.

Speaking after the proceedings, Moore said the court declined the prosecution’s request because Soyombo had not previously appeared before it.

He said, “The law is that for a bench warrant to be issued, the defendant must have been brought before the court.

“When the issue was raised by the prosecutor, the court, in its wisdom, asked whether the second defendant (Soyombo) had been brought before the court. The answer was no. So, the court said that, on that ground, a bench warrant could not be issued against a defendant who had not been brought before the court.”

Moore, however, disclosed that the prosecution had filed a motion ex parte seeking the court’s permission to serve Soyombo through electronic means.

“I saw that they filed an application, a motion ex parte, in court on Tuesday. It is an application made to the court asking for certain prayers. I got to know that one of the prayers they are seeking in that particular application is that they want to ensure that Soyombo is served by electronic means,” he said.

The charge arose from investigative reports by FIJ exposing alleged suspicious payments by the office of the former presidential aide, including N147,127,467.58 reportedly paid to Enseno Global Ventures Limited for the construction of a skill acquisition centre and classrooms at Ajeromi Primary School in Lagos.

In the charge sheet, the police alleged that the defendants’ publications placed Orelope-Adefulire in fear of death.

Ojukwu is currently being held at the Kuje Correctional Centre, while Soyombo is yet to be brought before the court.

Reacting to the development, Soyombo expressed surprise that the authorities had described him as being at large, insisting that he had not been served with the court processes.

“My shock at the discovery that I am ‘at large’ and that anyone needs a bench warrant to arrest me and produce me in court is indescribable,” he said.

He maintained that he had always made himself available to respond to legal proceedings and that the prosecution could reach him through his publicly available email address.

“My track record speaks for itself: no Nigerian government agency or anyone who has filed a court suit against me has ever needed extreme measures to get me. My email address is public and is [email protected]. Orelope-Adefulire’s lawyers only need to serve me via that email, and I will be in court on December 1.

“But as of today, I have not been served anywhere; I cannot be in court for a matter on which I haven’t been served,” he said.

Soyombo also disputed the claim that he had been difficult to locate physically, saying his whereabouts had been public in recent months.

He cited interviews he granted media organisations in Lagos and Abuja following the publication of his investigation, titled Europe through the Sahara Desert and the Mediterranean Sea, as well as a three-day exhibition at Alliance Française de Lagos.

He said the exhibition had been widely publicised before its commencement and that he had repeatedly announced his presence there.

“Anyone genuinely seeking to physically serve me a court process would have come there,” he added.

The journalist said the latest development was not the first time the police had sought to compel his appearance over the matter.

In March 2024, the police reportedly stopped short of declaring him wanted despite knowing he was outside the country.

Soyombo subsequently contacted the police himself after returning to Nigeria to arrange an appointment to present himself.