The Nigerian government is set to call Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, and four others as witnesses in a high-profile criminal case against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, SaharaReporters has learnt.
This development follows the Nigerian government’s decision to file criminal charges against the Kogi-born senator over her televised allegation that Akpabio and Bello plotted to assassinate her.
According to court documents exclusively obtained by this newspaper, the case was filed before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, with the Federal Republic of Nigeria listed as the complainant and Senator Natasha as the sole defendant.
The government is accusing the senator of criminal defamation under Section 391 of the Penal Code Law, Cap 89, Laws of the Federation, 1990, an offence punishable under Section 392 of the same law.
The charges are linked to an interview the senator granted on Channels Television’s programme, Politics Today, on April 3, 2025, where she openly accused Akpabio and Bello of plotting her assassination.
She had also alleged that the Senate President orchestrated the withdrawal of her security detail to expose her to danger.
“I do stand by what I said. In respect to the meeting or discussion Akpabio had with Yahaya Bello that night to eliminate me,” she said during the live interview.
A court document seen by this newspaper lists six individuals the government intends to call as witnesses to support the charges.
Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio is listed as a nominal complainant and is expected to testify on what he knows about the case. His address is listed as No. 13 TY Danjuma Street, Asokoro.
Yahaya Adoza Bello, also named as a nominal complainant, is to testify similarly. His address is No. 9 Benghazi Street, Wuse Zone 4.
Senator Ekpenyong Asuquo, who was alleged by Natasha to have driven Bello to the Hilton Hotel for the alleged plot meeting, is listed as a witness with an address at the Senate Building, National Assembly Complex.
Also on the list is Dr. Sandra C. Duru, a US-based individual, listed to testify to what she knows about the matter. Her address is 1 Chrisholm Trail Road, Suite 450, Round Rock, Texas, 78681.
Two police officers from the IGP Monitoring Unit, ACP Maya Iliya and SP Abdulhafiz Garba, are also on the witness list. Both are described as investigating officers who will testify to the role they played during the investigation.
Before the TV interview that triggered the charges, Senator Natasha had made similar claims at a political rally in Kogi State.
She alleged that powerful figures in Abuja were plotting her assassination through local proxies.
“The Senate President first reached out to Governor Ododo to recall me. But Ododo declined, saying the people love me too much. So he turned to Yahaya Bello,” she said during the rally.
“Akpabio was not satisfied. He then called for Yahaya Bello. It was Senator Asuquo who drove Yahaya Bello to the Hilton. I was informed. The meeting was in two folds. He told him to commence my recall. He was going to fund it. Of course, money changed hands that day. The second thing was that he should kill me.”
According to the senator, Akpabio was very specific in his alleged instructions.
“Akpabio told Yahaya Bello to kill me. He told him not to do it in Abuja. It should be done here [in Kogi], so it would seem like the people killed me. I didn’t make that public, but we did notify the police about it.”
