Chief Chuma Nzeribe, a former member of the House of Representatives, was arrested on Monday by a High Court in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, for disobedience to the court’s order.
The arrest warrant was issued by Justice Halilu Yusuf, who directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and other government security services to arrest Nzeribe anywhere in the country and bring him to court to face criminal charges.
While in Abuja, the Federal Government charged the Anambra politician with impersonation and cheating.
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Despite Justice Yusuf’s scheduling of the trial for March 11, the former lawmaker was not present in court.
On March 11, Justice Yusuf allowed a request for the verdict to be postponed until March 21, but Nzeribe failed to appear for no apparent reason.
The judge, acting on the EFCC’s request, used a provision of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act ACJA 2015 to direct security forces across the country to arrest the former federal lawmaker and bring him to court.
Nzeribe will be kept by security personnel until he is taken before the court, according to the judge.
The Federal Government has charged Nzeribe, a former governorship candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party in Anambra State, with impersonation, possession of counterfeit federal government credentials, and using them to defraud.
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On March 11, his lawyer, Charles Ndukwe, told the judge that a relative of his client had filed a letter to the judge stating that the former House of Representatives member was suffering from severe hypertension.
The court received a letter from Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Teaching Hospital dated March 10.
During the saga surrounding the letter’s origin, the judge ordered the lawyer to call his client to find out how long it would take him to recuperate.
However, following the inability of the counsel to give a categorical date, Justice Yusuf fixed March 21 with an order that the defendant must be physically present in court for the judgment to be delivered.
Shortly after the adjustment, counsel to the former lawmaker had challenged the presence of newsmen in court.
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The legal practitioner who was visibly angry with newsmen had queried their interest in covering judgment on the trial of his client.
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