A Nigerian court has remanded Adeniyi Adeyemi in custody after he pleaded not guilty to eight charges involving alleged forgery and impersonation, in a case concerning a purported government agency that secured a roughly $1 million budget allocation.
Adeyemi appeared before the Federal High Court in Abuja on September 30. Justice Mohammed Umar ordered his detention at Kuje Correctional Centre and scheduled a hearing on his bail application for October 12.
The Attorney-General’s office has taken over the prosecution from the police. His lawyer requested bail partly on health grounds, while the court scheduled October 12 and 13 for the bail hearing and trial proceedings.
Prosecutors allege that Adeyemi presented himself as director-general of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, or PFIPC, from 2024. The presidency says it neither established the organization nor authorized him to lead it, according to Reuters.
The alleged scheme involved a forged presidential appointment letter and documents used to request office space, staff and cooperation from government institutions. The purported council obtained premises inside the federal secretariat and appeared in government spending plans, Reuters reported, citing court filings.
Despite the reported budget allocation, Nigeria’s Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission said its investigation found no evidence that federal funds were approved or disbursed to the organization or its operators. It also reported uncovering two other allegedly fictitious agencies linked to Adeyemi.
Adeyemi denies wrongdoing and maintains that the PFIPC was genuine, saying he personally approached budget officials to secure its inclusion in government spending plans. The allegations remain unproven, with his next court appearance scheduled for October 12.
