ICPC Detains Ex Minister Nnaji At Abuja Airport Over Certificate Forgery
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has taken the immediate past Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji, into custody over allegations that he forged a university degree and submitted a false National Youth Service Corps discharge certificate during his ministerial screening in 2023.
The former minister was arrested on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, upon his arrival, with the assistance of operatives of the Department of State Services, before being handed over to the anti graft agency. The ICPC confirmed the arrest in a statement by its Head of Media and Public Communications, John Okor Odey, saying it followed “the execution of a bench warrant issued by the Federal High Court of Nigeria.”
According to the commission, the Federal High Court, Abuja Judicial Division, granted the arrest order on June 11, 2026, in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1160/2026, after Nnaji repeatedly failed to honour invitations for questioning. The ICPC said it first invited him through a letter dated May 15, 2026, served at his known addresses in Abuja and Enugu as well as through his email. “Despite service through multiple channels, Mr Nnaji failed to appear for investigative interviews on the scheduled dates, necessitating further legal action,” the statement read.
The arrest is the latest turn in a scandal that has trailed the former minister since October 2025, when a two year investigation by Premium Times reported that he forged a degree certificate from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and an NYSC discharge certificate, both of which he submitted to President Bola Tinubu and the Senate during his 2023 confirmation. The UNN registrar subsequently confirmed that although Nnaji was admitted to the university in 1981, he neither graduated nor was issued any certificate, while NYSC authorities disowned the discharge certificate in his possession in response to a Freedom of Information request.
Nnaji resigned from the cabinet three days after the report was published, insisting his exit was “not an admission of guilt, but rather a principled decision to respect the sanctity of due process.” He accused political opponents of waging “an orchestrated and sustained campaign of falsehoods” against him.
His resignation, however, did not end demands for prosecution. Many Nigerians argued that stepping down was inadequate given the alleged violations of the Criminal Code Act, and legal practitioner Liborous Oshoma had earlier criticised the government for failing to prosecute him, saying such officials “should be prosecuted and banned from holding public office.”
The court order of June 11 also granted the ICPC leave to declare Nnaji wanted through national newspapers and social media. The former minister initially denied the existence of any warrant against him, describing reports of a manhunt as a “media trial,” before filing an appeal against the order at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, on June 18, contesting the lower court’s jurisdiction.
Nnaji is currently being held at the ICPC headquarters in Abuja as investigations continue. The commission assured the public that “the matter will be pursued diligently in accordance with the law,” while noting that the allegations have not been determined by any court and that the former minister is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.