Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court in Abuja has issued an arrest warrant for Hathiramani Ranesh, the Managing Director of Dana Air, due to his alleged failure to appear in court for his trial.
Gatekeepers News reports that in a ruling on Monday, Justice Egwuatu emphasized that the arrest was warranted after Ranesh was served with formal charges and did not respond to multiple court proceedings.
The judge referenced Section 184 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) of 2015, which allows for the issuance of an arrest warrant against any defendant who fails to attend court.
The case has been adjourned, with the next hearing scheduled for January 13, 2025.
During the proceedings, a representative from the Federal Government requested the court to issue a bench warrant for Ranesh’s arrest, arguing that he had not appeared for his arraignment.
In contrast, the defense lawyer contended that they had filed a preliminary objection questioning the court’s jurisdiction over the matter and asserted that the prosecution had already been duly served.
The AGF had filed a six-count charge against Ranesh and two others.
In the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/101/2021, Dana Group PLC and Dana Steel Ltd are joined as second and third defendants, respectively.
