Officials of the Directorate of State Services Wednesday morning arrested former Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, while preparing to board a chartered flight to Abuja.
A Federal High Court in Abuja had issued a bench warrant for the arrest of former Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Geoffrey Uche Nnaji, over his alleged refusal to honour invitations by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, investigating a long-running certificate forgery scandal.
The warrant, which also authorized the ICPC to declare Nnaji wanted, came as the former minister was consolidating his position as the governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, for Enugu State in the 2027 elections.
The court granted the orders on Thursday, June 11, 2026, following an ex parte motion filed by the ICPC on June 4 in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1160/2026. ICPC counsel Osuobeni Akponimisingha told the court that the motion was necessitated by Nnaji’s repeated failure to honor invitations extended to him for investigative activities over the certificate forgery allegations.
The ICPC also sought permission to declare the former minister wanted in any national newspaper, social media platforms or other media, and to issue a bench warrant directing operatives of the commission or other enforcement agents, including private citizens, to identify and arrest Nnaji and hand him over to the commission for investigation. The court granted all the orders sought and ruled that the order would lapse only upon the arrest of the former minister.
The ICPC’s investigation into Nnaji’s certificate forgery scandal followed a painstaking two-year investigation which revealed that the then-minister forged his University of Nigeria, Nsukka, degree and National Youth Service Corps, certificates, which he submitted to President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian Senate during his ministerial confirmation in 2023. The ICPC’s ex parte motion was supported by an affidavit deposed by one David Nelson.
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A copy of the court’s warrant of arrest showed that Nnaji is being investigated for alleged forgery, abuse of office and conferment of unfair advantage while serving as a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The ICPC is expected to arraign Nnaji upon his arrest over the alleged offences.
Nnaji, acclaimed PDP governorship candidate in Enugu State for 2027 elections, was taken into custody and is expected to be handed over to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission for further investigation over alleged certificate forgery case, which led to his sudden resignation from President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet in October 2025.
The arrest followed weeks after a Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the ICPC to arrest the former minister over allegations that he forged his academic certificates.
In a ruling delivered in mid-June, the court also granted the anti-corruption agency leave to declare Nnaji wanted through national newspapers, social media platforms and other media channels if necessary.
The ICPC had informed the court that its expertise application became necessary after the former minister repeatedly failed to honor invitations issued to him for what it described as “investigative activities” relating to the certificate forgery allegations.
These documents were submitted to President Tinubu and the Nigerian Senate during Nnaji’s ministerial screening and confirmation process in 2023. The publication further alleged that the same certificates were presented to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Department of State Services, and the Senate as part of the documentation required for his appointment.
Nnaji resigned from his position as a minister on October 8, 2025, saying his resignation was to uphold due process rather than an admission of guilt. Following the court’s order, Nnaji denied the existence of the warrant, dismissing the newspaper’s report as a “media trial.”
However, court documents later showed that on June 18, the former minister filed a notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, challenging the Federal High Court’s order authorizing his arrest. Wednesday’s arrest marks the latest development in the high-profile certificate forgery case, with the ICPC expected to continue its investigation upon taking custody of the former minister. Neither Nnaji nor the ICPC had issued an official statement on the arrest as of the time of filing this report.
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