The FCT High Court in Maitama, Abuja has issued a warrant for the arrest of convicted former Power Minister Saleh Mamman, after he failed to appear for proceedings in a separate N31bn fraud trial involving him and six co-defendants.
Trial judge Maryann Anenih ordered the arrest on Monday after the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, requested that the trial continue in Mamman’s absence.
“Application granted to proceed without the first defendant and application for bench warrant granted,” the judge ruled, adjourning the matter until Thursday.
It is the second warrant of arrest issued against Mamman in days. On May 7, the Federal High Court in Abuja convicted him on 12 counts of money laundering involving the diversion of N33.8bn meant for the Zungeru and Mambilla hydroelectric power projects.
Justice James Omotosho issued the first arrest warrant that day after Mamman also failed to appear for his conviction, and fixed May 13 for sentencing.
Mamman’s lawyer, Femi Atteh, told the FCT High Court on Monday that he did not know his client’s whereabouts, noting that Oyedepo had previously said Mamman was “the state’s property” following the Federal High Court’s arrest order.
Oyedepo confirmed that the first warrant had yet to be executed. “The defendant without reasonable justification absconded from trial,” he said, adding that Mamman “is still in hiding.”
In the FCT High Court case, the EFCC charged Mamman alongside seven others with nine counts of conspiracy, false pretence and intent to defraud to the tune of N31bn, also linked to alleged diversions from the Mambilla Power Project. His co-defendants, who were all present in court on Monday, denied the allegations when they were arraigned in October 2025.
The EFCC, through its witnesses, presented account documents from a string of companies allegedly used to move the funds, including Spinhills Biz International Limited, Silverline Ocean Ventures Limited, Beaver Builders Limited, Gurupche Business Enterprise, Breathable Investment Limited, First-Class Construction Project Limited, Royal Perimeter Ventures, Dannywest Limited, Dorino Bright Limited and Sipikin Global Ventures Limited.
Mamman served as minister of power under former President Muhammadu Buhari from 2019 to 2021, he recently declared interest in the 2027 Taraba State governorship race on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
