Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja has issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Dr. Abraham Ehizojie, a medical doctor at the Kuje Correctional Centre, for allegedly refusing to produce the medical report of detained Binance Holdings Ltd executive, Tigran Gambaryan.
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The order came in response to an application by Gambaryan’s lawyer, Mark Mordi, on Tuesday.
Gambaryan, facing money laundering charges alongside Binance, appeared in court earlier that day in a wheelchair.
Previously, on July 5, Justice Nwite had directed the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) to submit Gambaryan’s medical certificate by July 16, following Mordi’s application.
Mordi requested that Dr. Ehizojie be summoned to explain his failure to comply with the court order.
This action stemmed from an incident on May 23, when Gambaryan collapsed in court due to alleged ill health.
At the hearing, Mordi informed the court that the order had not been fulfilled. A prison official confirmed delivering the order to Dr. Ehizojie on July 9, 2024.
EFCC counsel, Ekene Iheanacho stated he had expected the medical officer to be present in court.
Mordi then requested the court to issue a bench warrant for Dr. Ehizojie and to mandate hospital remand for Gambaryan to undergo a thorough medical examination.
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While Iheanacho agreed on the need for adequate medical treatment, he opposed the hospital remand request.
Justice Nwite expressed disappointment over the government’s disregard for the court order, stating, “I hereby make an order of bench warrant on the medical doctor at the Kuje Correctional Service, to appear before this court.”
He also ordered that Gambaryan be taken to Nizamiye Hospital for a 24-hour medical examination under full security surveillance.
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The trial was adjourned until October 11 and October 18 for further proceedings.
Earlier in the session, Dr. Olubukola Akinwunmi, Head of Payment Policy and Regulation Division at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), provided evidence and was cross-examined by Babatunde Fagbohunlu, SAN, counsel for Binance, the first defendant in the criminal case.
