The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi, SAN, has formally terminated the criminal defamation charges brought against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

A notice by the Federal Government bringing the trial of the Kogi Central senator to a halt was filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The court document, sighted on Sunday by our correspondent, was signed by Mohammed Babadoko Abubakar, Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), on behalf of the Attorney General of the Federation.

It was titled “Notice of Discontinuance of Proceedings in Charge Number FHC/ABJ/CR.195/2025” and was brought pursuant to Sections 108(1), (2) and (5) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.

The document read: “Take notice that the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation intends to discontinue proceedings in this matter.”

Meanwhile, Justice Umar Garba of the Federal High Court, where Senator Natasha is standing trial, is expected to dismiss the charges on the next adjourned date after the court resumes from its Christmas vacation.

Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan was arraigned on June 3, 2025, for allegedly making defamatory statements implicating the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and a former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, in an alleged assassination plot.

The senator, who was then under suspension, was accused, among other offences, of breaching Section 391 of the Penal Code Law, Cap 89, Laws of the Federation, 1990, over statements made during a television interview regarding the alleged plot to assassinate her by Akpabio and Yahaya Bello.

At the arraignment, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan pleaded not guilty to the charge and was admitted to bail by the judge on self-recognisance.

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