An Ikeja Special Offences Court on Wednesday issued a bench warrant for the arrest of a defendant, Toyosi Ayodele, over alleged N600 million and $50,000 agribusiness investment fraud.
Ayodele, alongside his companies Reaprite Global Ltd and Agrorite Ltd, are facing an 11-count charge of obtaining money under false pretences and stealing, brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Justice Olubunmi Abike-Fadipe issued the bench warrant due to the controversy surrounding the defendant’s medical report and Ayodele’s absence in court.
The judge noted that the medical report submitted by Ayodele’s counsel, Chukwuemeka Maduagwu, allegedly from University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, lacked the hospital’s stamp.
The judge said: “I have examined exhibit A, which appears to be a letter issued from the accident and emergency department of UCH, Ibadan dated May 20, 2025.
“The report states that the first defendant was brought to the emergency unit via emergency referral from Reddington Hospital, with a medical history of extremely high blood pressure, and had been admitted for treatment and observation.
“The purported report, allegedly from UCH, a renowned medical institution, curiously omitted mention of the specific body part affected by the high blood pressure.”
She said there was no evidence to indicate that UCH conducted any diagnostic procedures to determine the defendant’s specific medical condition.
Abike-Fadipe also said that there was no diagnosis or suggested cause of treatment, therefore agreed with the prosecutor that the exhibit was not a medical report rather a letter containing information.
“I am wary of accepting the document given the discrepancies noted in the preceding paragraph,” she held.
The judge therefore directed the EFCC to verify the authenticity of the letter and issued a warrant of arrest against the first defendant.
She also ordered that the first defendant be produced before the court to state why the bail granted to him should not to be revoked.
The judge adjourned the case until July 8 for further proceedings.
Earlier, the EFCC counsel, Mrs Deborah Ademu-etteh, informed the court that the case was for continuation of trial, adding that her witness was in court.
The defence counsel, however, informed the court that the defendant experienced a medical emergency after leaving court during the last proceeding and was admitted at the UCH.
He requested for an adjournment to enable the defendant’s presence during trial.
The prosecution had objected that the application was a tactic by the defence to delay the trial, adding that there was no UCH’s stamp on the purported medical report.
Eze had also prayed the court to issue N500,000 cost to the defence for delaying the case.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that a chartered accountant and an IT expert, Mr James Emadoye, had on May 20, testified as the first prosecution witness. (NAN)
