EFCC recovers N30bn from humanitarian ministry

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission says it has recovered over N30 billion naira from the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs under the former minister, Sadiya Umar-Farouk.

The EFCC said the commission had also uncovered over N500 million naira from the scam associated with Umar-Farouk’s successor, Betta Edu, who was recently suspended by President Bola Tinubu.

According to the report in December thirty-seven billion naira was transferred from government coffers and sent to 38 different bank accounts domiciled in five legacy commercial banks belonging to or connected with a contractor, James Okwete, and on Friday N30 billion naira was recovered by the EFCC following the placement of a lien on the bank accounts of Umar-Farouq and Okwete, who are still being grilled by the anti-graft agency’s investigators.

The agency is also still grilling Edu in connection with an alleged N17bn fraud, while the suspended Coordinator of the National Social Investment Programme, Halima Shehu, is also still being questioned over an alleged N44 billion naira fraud.

However, the Chairman of the EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, at a dialogue in Abuja said, most of the 747 convictions involved persons who were prosecuted for cybercrime offences, adding that, the commission has deepened its probe into money laundering cases involving some high-profile public officials, especially former governors and ministers indicted for fraud.