Justice Kuewunmi directed the Commissioner of Police, Lagos and the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to ensure Pwajok is brought to court.
The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos Tuesday ordered the arrest of the Director-General of the National Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Mr. Matthew Pwajok for alleged disobedience to a court order.
Justice Babs Kuewunmi gave the order following an application filed by the counsel for the third and eighth defendants, Mr. Olalekan Ojo SAN, at the resumption of N6.95 billion fraud charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes (EFCC) against a former NAMA managing director, Ibrahim Abdulsalam, and 11 others.
Ojo, in the application, alleged that Pwajok shunned a July 2 subpoena issued by the court, commanding him to appear and produce the documents requested by both defendants.
In a short ruling, Justice Kuewunmi directed the Commissioner of Police, Lagos and the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to ensure Pwajok is brought to court.
The judge adjourned further proceedings till January 10 and 11, 2023.
The EFCC is prosecuting Abdulsalam and 11 others for the alleged offence.
Some of the others are Nnamdi Udoh, former managing director (still at large); Adegorite Olumuyiwa, general manager; procurement; Agbolade Segun, general manager, finance; Clara Aliche, director finance; Joy Ayodele Adegorite, Randville Investment Limited and Multeng Travels and Tours Limited.
The defendants were alleged to have conspired and stolen the sum of N6,922,676,815.00 from NAMA.
One of the charges reads: "That you, Ibrahim Abdulsalam, Nnamdi Udoh (still at large), Adegorite Olumuyiwa, Agbolade Segun, Clara Aliche, Joy Ayodele Adegorite, Randville Investment Limited and Multeng Travels and Tours Limited, on or about August 19, 2013, in Lagos, with intent to defraud conspired to induce the NAMA to deliver N2,847,523,975.00 to Delosa Limited, Air Sea Delivery Limited and Sea Schedules Systems Limited under the pretence that the said sum represented the cost of clearing consignments belonging to the said Agency.
"You thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8 (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”
The defendants pleaded not guilty.
The Nigerian government appointed Pwajok, a former director of operations at NAMA who retired in December 2021, as the acting managing director of the agency in January 2022.
Pwajok succeeded Fola Akinkuotu, whose tenure expired on January 7, 2022.
The appointment of Pwajok was conveyed in a letter dated January 12, 2022, from the Federal Ministry of Aviation.