Crime

13 Ex-Govs under EFCC’s Radar over N772bn Fraud Cases

By Web News 504

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has reopened money laundering cases against 13 former governors and some former ministers, with the amounts involved running into over N853.8bn.

The amount at stake in the high-profile cases involving the former governors and ex-ministers was not less than N772.2bn, however, the anti-graft agency is currently investigating the N81.6bn that was allegedly looted in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.

However, another $2.2bn was alleged to have gone missing through money laundering, fund diversion and misappropriation in recent times. The $2.2bn was allegedly diverted by a former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki; late media mogul, Raymond Dokpesi; former governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa; and former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda, and others.

According to the EFCC, the money was meant for arms procurement in support of the war against terrorists, but it was laundered, diverted, and misappropriated.

While Dasuki was in custody of the Department of State Services in 2015, the EFCC arrested Dokpesi, Bafarawa, Yuguda and others.

They were all arrested after being indicted by a presidential committee that investigated arms procurement under former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.

The committee said about $2.2bn was diverted for purposes other than arms procurement.

The affected persons include two former Ekiti State governors, Kayode Fayemi and Ayo Fayose; former Zamfara State governor, Bello Matawalle; two former Enugu State governors, Chimaroke Nnamani and Sullivan Chime; former Nasarawa State governor, Abdullahi Adamu; former Kano State governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso.

Others are former Rivers State governor, Peter Odili; former Abia State governor, Theodore Orji; former Gombe State governor, Danjuma Goje; former Sokoto State governor, Aliyu Wamako; former Bayelsa State governor, Timipre Sylva; and former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido.

Matawalle, who is currently serving as the Minister of Defence in the administration of President Bola Tinubu, is being probed for alleged N70bn money laundering; while Fayemi, who served as Minister of Solid Minerals Development in former President Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet from November 11, 2015 to May 30, 2018, before resigning to contest the governorship election for his second term, is being investigated for an alleged N4bn fraud, while Fayose, a two-term governor of Ekiti State, is being investigated by the anti-graft agency for an alleged N6.9bn fraud.

Nnamani is being probed for an alleged N5.3bn fraud; Chime is being investigated over an alleged N450m campaign fraud as part of the N23bn allegedly shared by a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, while Adamu is under probe for alleged N15bn fraud.

Kwakwanso is being probed for alleged non-remittance of N10bn pension fund; Orji is being investigated over alleged N551bn money laundering; while Odili is similarly being probed for alleged N100bn fraud. It is not yet clear how the probe of the ex-Rivers State governor will be handled as he obtained an order of perpetual injunction restraining the EFCC and other security agencies from a Federal High Court in March 2008, which has not been vacated to date.

Goje is being probed by the commission for an alleged N5bn fraud; Wammako is being investigated for allegedly diverting N15bn; Sylva, a former Minister of State for Petroleum under Buhari, is under probe for alleged N19.2bn money laundering; while Lamido is being investigated over an alleged N1.35bn fraud.

Diezani is being probed over several alleged money laundering cases running into several billions of naira and millions of dollars.

Sources privy to the development told our correspondent on Friday that the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, was reviewing all the high-profile cases, and had since his assumption of office reappointed investigators to take up the several probes without prejudice to the suspects’ social or political status.

“The chairman is reviewing all high profile cases, and he has ordered the investigators not to treat anyone differently, especially politically exposed persons, such as former governors and ministers, who were indicted for money laundering,” an impeccable source told Sunday PUNCH.

The EFCC had also recently commenced the probe of some former ministers, Olu Agunloye (power, mines and steel), Olu Agunloye, over an alleged $6bn fraud on the Mambilla Power Project; and Sadiya Umar-Farouk (humanitarian affairs), over an alleged N37.1bn fraud.

Agunloye and Umar-Farouq served under former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Muhammadu Buhari, respectively. The EFCC is probing both former ministers and arraigned Agunloye, who was remanded in a custodial centre pending the perfection of his N50m bail.

The commission is also probing the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, and the embattled Coordinator of the suspended National Social Investment Programme Agency, Halima Shehu, over alleged N81.6bn fraud uncovered in the ministry.

EFCC was also probing the chief executive officers of several banks, civil servants, and contractors in connection with the humongous fraud uncovered in the ministry.

Olukoyede had on Friday declared that all high-profile cases would be reviewed and revisited, while noting that indicted former or incumbent public officials’ corruption cases would not be overlooked or abandoned by the commission.

He made the declaration in Abuja through the acting Director of Public Affairs, EFCC, Wilson Uwujaren, who spoke to journalists following a protest by members of the Zamfara Alternative Forum at the commission’s headquarters in Jabi, Abuja.

Members of the group had urged the anti-graft agency to revisit the probe of the immediate past governor of the state, Matawalle, over alleged N70bn money laundering.

Responding to the request of the protesters, Uwujaren revealed that Olukoyede had reviewed all inherited high-profile cases since he assumed office, adding that the commission would proceed with the probe of every indicted high-profile person.

He said, “I want to assure you that, as far as the commission is concerned, nobody is above the law. What the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, has done since assuming office is that he has reviewed all the high-profile cases he inherited.

“And the EFCC Chairman has asked me to assure you that this case, like others, will not be an exception. The case will be reviewed, and the chairman assures you that something will be done under the law, and no one is above the law and no case shall be swept under the carpet.

“Rest assured that these cases will be revisited because the EFCC believes that no case should be swept under the carpet. If you have done something wrong and if our investigation is able to establish that you have a case, we will proceed with the matter.”

On May 18, 2023, the EFCC, through its spokesman, Osita Nwajah, had said Matawalle was being investigated by the commission over allegations of monumental corruption, award of phantom contracts, and diversion of over N70bn.

He stated, “The money, which was sourced as a loan from an old-generation bank purportedly for the execution of projects across the local government areas of the state, was allegedly diverted by the governor through proxies and contractors, who received payment for contracts that were not executed.

“The commission’s investigations revealed that more than 100 companies received payments from the funds, with no evidence of service rendered to the state.

“Some of the contractors, who had been invited and quizzed by the commission, made startling revelations on how they were allegedly compelled by the governor to return the funds received from the state coffers back to him through his aides after converting the same to United States dollars.”

Punch/Simeon Ugbodovon

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Crime

Police Seize Cars, Cash in Anti-Money Laundering Raids

By Web News 572

Singapore police have seized about S$1bn ($735m; £578m) – including luxury homes, cars and watches – in one of its biggest anti-money laundering probes.

Gold bars, designer handbags, wine and S$23m in cash were among the items seized in the raids.

Police arrested ten people in the operation, all of whom held foreign passports.

Raids of this size are rare in Singapore, which has one of the lowest crime rates in the world.

The Singapore Police Force said in a statement that simultaneous raids were held across the city-state on Tuesday.

It added that 94 homes, including houses in some of the country’s most sought after areas, were seized, along with 50 vehicles.

Ten people, aged between 31 and 44, were arrested for alleged money laundering and forgery offences. Police said that those arrested had passports from China, Cambodia, Turkey and Vanuatu.

The group was “suspected to be involved in laundering the proceeds of crime from their overseas organised crime activities including scams and online gambling,” according to the police.

“We have zero tolerance for the use of Singapore as a safe haven for criminals,” said David Chew, director of the police’s Commercial Affairs Department, which investigates white-collar crime.

“Our message to these criminals is simple – if we catch you, we will arrest you. If we find your ill-gotten gains, we will seize them. We will deal with you to the fullest extent of our laws,” he added.

Police said another 12 people were assisting with investigations, while eight others are currently on its wanted list.

The country’s central bank and financial regulator, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said it had been in contact with financial institutions “where the potentially tainted funds have been identified”.

It added that it would take “firm action” against institutions which did not meet official anti-money laundering requirements.

BBC/Simeon Ugbodovon

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Foreign

President’s Son Detained over Alleged Money Laundering

By Web News 369

The son of Colombian President Gustavo Petro has been arrested for money laundering and illicit enrichment by the country’s attorney general.

Nicolas Petro, a politician in Atlantico province, was detained over allegations he was paid by drug traffickers to fund his father’s peace efforts and election campaign.

He has denied the claims and welcomed the inquiry when it was launched.

The younger Mr Petro’s ex-wife has also been arrested as part of the probe.

President Petro, the country’s first left-wing leader, has denied taking money from Colombia’s drug traffickers and ordered prosecutors to investigate his son in March.

Writing on social media on Saturday, he said it was painful for one of his children to be sent to prison, but also that he would not interfere with the investigation.

“To my son I wish luck and strength. May these occurrences forge his character and may he reflect about his own errors,” Petro said.

The attorney general’s office said the allegations against Nicolas related to illegal contributions diverted from his father’s election campaign last year.

Nicolas and his former wife, Daysuris del Carmen Vásquez, are being transferred from the Caribbean coast to Colombia’s capital Bogotá.

Ms Vásquez has previously alleged in local media that her former husband was given large amounts of money by drug cartels last year, during the political campaign that led to Gustavo Petro’s victory in the presidential election.

Around 450,000 people are believed to have been killed as a result of 60 years of internal conflict in Colombia.

President Petro vowed to secure peace or surrender in deals with both Colombia’s notorious armed rebel groups and drug cartels as part of his campaign – efforts which have seen intermittent success over his first year in office.

A negotiated ceasefire is set to begin with the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla group in August, but talks with major crime gang the Clan del Golfo have failed because of ongoing violence.

BBC/Simeon Ugbodovon

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Crime

Two Chinese Nationals Jailed for Money Laundering

By Web News 345

Federal Court of Appeal sitting in Sokoto has convicted and sentenced two Chinese nationals, Mr. Meng Wei Kun and Mr. Xu Kuai to three years imprisonment each on one count and two count charges.

Delivering the judgement, the presiding judge, justice Abubakar Talba faulted an earlier judgment delivered by the Federal High Court Sokoto, which discharged and acquitted the accused persons on three count charges bordering on conspiracy, money laundering and attempted bribery to the tune of fifty Million nairas brought by the Sokoto Zonal Command of the EFCC.

Justice Talba warned the respondents who tried to frustrate the effort of the court in delivering justice noting that Court must allow cases to be heard on merits, in an effort to justify the trust reposed on the judiciary.

Justice Talba said the EFCC had proven Counts one and two of the three Count charges before the Federal High Court beyond a reasonable doubt.

According to Justice Talba, the respondents were charged with Conspiracy and making a cash payment in excess of the threshold provided by the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 as amended in 2012. He said in an effort to discharge his responsibilities, the trial judge misconceived that no offence was committed which the appeal Court later established.

Justice Talba therefore convicted and sentenced the Chinese nationals to 3 years on each of the two Counts with an option of ten Million naira fine each on each count.

FRCN Abuja

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