EFCC Archives - Citybuzz News

EFCC Dismisses 40 Staff Over Corruption Allegations — Olukoyede

September 10, 2026August 31, 2026 by admin

The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, has revealed that over 40 personnel have been dismissed for alleged corruption and financial misconduct since he took office. Olukoyede said more than five of the dismissed officers were currently being prosecuted, while case files involving others were being prepared for prosecution. The EFCC chairman disclosed this on Monday during a briefing at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja on its activities under his leadership. “In the past two and a half years or three years of my service, I’ve asked them to dismiss over 40 staff on account of corruption and financial malpractice. More than five of them are being prosecuted at the moment,” Olukoyede said. He said the commission would not shield its personnel from prosecution when they were found to have engaged in the same corrupt practices the EFCC investigates among members of the public. “Because if that is what people do in other agencies and I arrest them, I investigate them, I prosecute them, why must I just dismiss you if you do it within our own system and I’m not prosecuting you?” he asked. Olukoyede said some of the affected personnel were already facing trial, while the commission was preparing case files against others. “You can follow those cases in court; they are public knowledge,” he said. The EFCC chairman also disclosed that the commission had renamed its former Department of Internal Affairs as the Department of Ethics and Integrity as part of measures to strengthen internal accountability. According to him, the change was intended to reflect the commission’s commitment to what he described as “internal cleansing”. Olukoyede further revealed that the commission had developed a gift policy for its personnel to strengthen transparency and accountability among officers. He said EFCC personnel would be required to declare assets above a specified threshold, including gifts received from relatives abroad. The chairman said the commission would also determine the categories of gifts its personnel could accept, noting that the policy was aimed at ensuring officers could account for their means of livelihood and standard of living. “You must be sure that your hands are clean. You can’t be fighting corruption when your hands are soiled with corrupt practices,” Olukoyede said.

Osun Moves to Court Over EFCC’s Freeze on Govt Account

August 5, 2026 by admin

Osun State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Oluwole Jimi-Bada, announced on Wednesday that he has been authorised by the governor to institute legal action against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following the anti-graft agency’s decision to freeze the state’s government accounts. Jimi-Bada said a ‘Post no debit’ letter from the EFCC was forwarded to the management of the First Bank where Osun government accounts were domiciled on Wednesday. The commissioner, who expressed readiness to proceed to court, said the move by the anti-graft agency may hamper government’s business, noted that Governor Ademola Adeleke was not using state funds to run its campaign for reelection. “I have the mandate of the governor to proceed to the Federal High Court to challenge this move. EFCC can investigate the accounts but it can’t freeze the accounts without order of court. “This step will affect government running but we will challenge the move and ensure that the agency acts within the ambit of the law,” Jimi-Bada said. Corroborating the Attorney General, Osun State Commissioner for Finance, Sola Ogungbile, alleged that police operatives had stormed the main branch of First Bank in Osogbo and arrested staff members of the bank. He also said Adeleke was not using state funds for his campaigns and urged the anti graft agency to consider the implications that the move will have on the general well-being of the residents. Earlier, Adeleke raised the alarm that EFCC was planning to freeze all Osun State government accounts. In a statement signed by the state Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, on Wednesday, the governor said the EFCC was also reportedly planning to freeze accounts of all top government functionaries. The governor who said such a plan, if true, amounts to the height of lawlessness, said “The plot to freeze the state government accounts is meant to paralyze government activities ahead of the August 15th governorship election.” The governor affirmed that there is no legal basis or justification for any push to freeze the state government accounts, declaring that the anti-graft agency has no legal powers to freeze the account of a state government. Details later…

JUST IN: EFCC Arrest Energy Commission DG over Alleged N500bn Fraud

May 13, 2026 by admin

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission have arrested the Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, Mustapha Abdullahi, over alleged money laundering offences. A source within the anti-graft agency, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, disclosed on Wednesday that Abdullahi was arrested in Abuja and is currently in the custody of the commission. According to the source, the alleged fraud involves funds estimated at N500bn. “We have arrested the Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, Dr Mustapha Abdullahi, for money laundering offences. He was arrested and is currently in our custody. The money is to the tune of N500bn,” the official said. Efforts to get confirmation from the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, were unsuccessful as he could not be reached as of the time of filing this report. President Bola Tinubu had on October 24, 2023 appointed Abdullahi as Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria. Details later…

BREAKING: EFCC Move to take Over Malami’s Abuja House

March 24, 2026 by admin

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Tuesday moved to take over the Maitama residence of former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, in Abuja. EFCC operatives, reportedly led by Folarin Dare, arrived in about five buses and, dressed in their red and black jackets, heavily armed, barricaded the road leading to Malami’s residence. Efforts to access the property, located at No. 2 Koranakh Close, off Amazon Street in Maitama, Abuja, were unsuccessful as the operatives sealed off the area. The development is believed to be connected to an ongoing investigation into alleged financial improprieties. Details shortly…

VeryDarkMan Arrested Over Multiple Petitions, To Be Charged Soon — EFCC

May 5, 2025 by admin

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has said that the arrest of social media influencer, Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, was carried out over multiple petitions submitted to its agency. The anti-graft agency confirmed to BBC News Pidgin through its spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, on Monday. According to him, VeryDarkMan was taken into custody following complaints from several petitioners on the allegation of cyberstalking. He said, “We arrested him to respond to a series of allegations raised against him by some petitioners. “We will release him when he meets the bail conditions and we will take the case to court as soon as possible; we are law-abiding.” When asked if the case was connected to Guaranty Trust Bank, Oyewale noted that the petitions were from different individuals and the agency owed them a duty of protection. Oyewole added that the commission was planning to arraign the social media activist. More to come…

EFCC Presents Aisha Achimugu In Court After Arrest

April 30, 2025 by admin

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission officers brought businesswoman Aisha Achimugu to the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday, as ordered by the court. Achimugu, escorted by two female EFCC operatives, arrived around 11:35 am. She was declared wanted in March by the EFCC over allegations of criminal conspiracy and money laundering. On Monday, the Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice I.E. Ekwo, had ordered her to appear before the EFCC on Tuesday. The court also ordered her to appear before the court on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. Achimugu was reportedly arrested by EFCC operatives after arriving in the country around 5am and has been in their custody since. On Tuesday, EFCC arrested Achimugu at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. It was gathered that Achimugu was arrested around 5am shortly after her return from London. Her lawyer, Chief Chikaosolu Ojukwu, told our correspondent that Aisha Achimugu was arrested by the EFCC around 5 a.m. on Tuesday after returning to Nigeria from London on her own. Ojukwu criticised the EFCC, saying the arrest went against a court order. NAN

EFCC Arrests Suspended Edo Official “Ebo Stone” For Naira Abuse

March 17, 2025 by admin

Operatives of the Benin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, on Monday, arrested the suspended coordinator of the Edo State Public Safety Response Team, Kelly Okungbowa, popularly known as Ebo Stone, for alleged naira abuse. The EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, revealed this in a statement on Monday. He said Okungbowa has been suspended by the state government owing to a viral video where he was seen spraying and mutilating the naira at a bar on March 9, 2025. The statement reads, “The EFCC has arrested Kelly Okungbowa (a.k.a Ebo Stone) for alleged naira abuse. “Okungbowa, who until recently was the coordinator of the Edo State Public Safety Response Team, PSRT, now suspended by the State Government, was arrested owing to a viral video where he was seen spraying and mutilating the naira at a bar on March 9, 2025. “He will be charged to court as soon as investigations are completed.” “Okungbowa, who until recently was the coordinator of the Edo State Public Safety Response Team, PSRT, now suspended by the State Government, was arrested owing to a viral video where he was seen spraying and mutilating the naira at a bar on March 9, 2025. “He will be charged to court as soon as investigations are completed.” In a statement on Monday, the Publicity Secretary of the Edo State PDP Caretaker Committee, Chris Nehikhare, charged EFCC with thorough investigation and diligent prosecution in accordance with the CBN Act of 2007, which criminalises the abuse of naira notes. Nehikhare said, “The Edo State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) commends the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for the swift arrest of Kelly Okungbowa, also known as Ebo Stone, for alleged naira abuse. “The swift arrest of Okungbowa, who was seen in a viral video spraying and mutilating the naira, sends a strong message that such criminal and irresponsible actions will not be tolerated, regardless of the perpetrator’s position or influence. “We charge the EFCC to carry out a thorough investigation on the matter and ensure diligent prosecution by the CBN Act of 2007, which criminalises the abuse of naira notes, including spraying, stepping on, or mishandling.” Punch

Alleged N423bn Scam: Northern Christians Give EFCC 72 Hours To Arrest El-Rufai

February 7, 2025 by admin

ABUJA – As debate continues to heat up around the allegation of misappropriation of funds by the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai; another group has come out to charge the anti graft agency to do its job by arresting him. In a statement made available to newsmen on Thursday and signed by Barr. Gideon Jato and Bro. Sunday Adoka, President and Secretary respectively of Northern Christians Accord (NCA); the group reiterated that, it was long overdue for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest and probe Mallam El-Rufai. The group wondered why it would take the EFCC such a long time without taking action, even when series of petitions have been submitted at the national headquarters, after the Kaduna State House of Assembly indicted El-Rufai and some key officials of his government of allegedly embezzling the sum of N423 billion. The Kaduna State Assembly ad-hoc committee probing the financial dealings of the eight years administration of former Governor El-Rufai had in June, 2024, indicted him and some key members of his cabinet for alleged corruption in the awards of contracts and management of both domestic and foreign loans obtained by his government. In the report submitted to the House by the chairman of the ad-hoc committee, Henry Danjuma, it said that there was evidence of several cases of corruption in the running of the affairs of the Government, Ministries, Departments, and Agencies in Kaduna State from 29th May 2015 to 29th May 2023. After adopting the report, the House recommended, amongst other things, that the Kaduna Internal Revenue Service withdraw the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) Account domiciled at Zenith Bank as Security for N20,000,000,000.00 guaranteed in 2023 forthwith and request the bank to refund all monies deducted on account of the purported illegal guarantee together with the accrued interest thereof. The House also recommended that all the Commissioners of Finance and the Accountants General of the State from 29th May, 2015 to 29th May, 2023 be referred to the appropriate Law Enforcement Agencies for thorough investigation. Subsequently, a group under the auspices of Kaduna Citizens Watch for Good Governance (KCWGG), in July 2024 took petitions to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) against Mallam E-Rufai and his men, over an alleged N423 billion fraud. Seven months after the indictment by the Parliament and the attendant petitions to the anti graft agencies, no action has been taken to arrest or probe the former Governor. “We perceive this as an affront and total disregard to the rule of law and a great insult to the sensibility of the people of Kaduna State, especially the institution of the State House of Assembly. “For the EFCC and ICPC to have closed their eyes and shut their ears against the indictments, petitions and cries of Kaduna people, only means they are in support of corruption in Nigeria and as such, shielding El-Rufai. “It is very glaring that the law in Nigeria is centrifugally positioned to favour some people and witch-hunt others. We remember how the EFCC was battling day and night a few months ago, looking for former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, over a petition from a group in the state. “But the same EFCC has brazenly become blind, deaf and dumb over the El-Rufai issue, despite the indictment by the House of Assembly, and having received a series of petitions from various groups. Whereas, in the case of Kogi State, the Assembly did not indict the former Governor, but EFCC went for him, arrested and arraigned him. But Kaduna is a special case that cannot be handled, because El-Rufai is untouchable? “The man who was alleged to have stolen N80bn is already standing trial. Why is it taking EFCC and others years to prosecute a man who was indicted of almost N500bn? “The Northern Christians Accord is giving the EFCC and other agencies responsible for the arrest, prosecution and recovery of the N423bn confirmed by the Assembly to have been allegedly embezzled by El-Rufai, to do the needful and save themselves and the nation of this monumental embarrassment. “Failure to do so, we shall not hesitate to create awareness about the complacency of the agencies, both within Nigeria and to the international community. We shall also mobilise our members across the 19 northern states, to match the headquarters of EFCC and National Assembly”, the group added. Independent NG

Cybercrime: EFCC Arraigns 11 Chinese, Alleges Plot To Destabilise Nigeria

February 5, 2025 by admin

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, on Tuesday, arraigned 11 Chinese nationals over allegations of cyber fraud, identity theft, and an attempt to destabilise Nigeria’s constitutional structure. The defendants were arraigned before the Federal High Court in Lagos. They pleaded not guilty to the charges. The development comes only a day after the anti-graft agency arraigned 42 Chinese and Filipinos for similar offences before the same Federal High Court in Lagos. According to the EFCC, the foreign nationals were arrested during a raid tagged “Eagle Flush Operation” conducted on December 19, 2024, in Lagos. Following their not-guilty plea, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke ordered that they be remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre in Lagos. The defendants are Wang Xiong Wei (alias Xiao Bai), Chen Dong Dong (alias Cun Zhao), Chen Yuan (alias Xiao Doa), Wu Yuan An (alias Zeng Niu), Wang Gong Lin (alias Wang Jing Lin), and Weng Mao Rong (alais A Xiang). They were arraigned on separate charges relating to cybercrimes, cyberterrorism, possession of fraudulent documents, and identity theft. According to the EFCC, the defendants allegedly recruited Nigerian youths for identity theft and other cyber fraud schemes. Additionally, five other Chinese nationals, Liu Ke Fan (alias Lina, Lui Chen), Huang Hai Tao, Zhang Jian Feng, Wu A Wang, and Xiao Xin, were charged before the court. In one of the charges, the EFCC accused Liu Ke Fan of impersonating a 28-year-old American named Lina, living in Germany, as part of a romance scam and cryptocurrency fraud operation. Prosecutors alleged that in December 2024, Liu Ke Fan, “with intent to gain advantage for himself and members of his criminal syndicate group, fraudulently impersonated a U.S. citizen using a fake profile on his company’s Maya desktop computer.” The EFCC further told the court that the defendant “willfully provided false information during an investigation, falsely presenting himself as Liu Chen to mislead investigators and conceal his involvement in a criminal syndicate specializing in romance scams, cryptocurrency fraud, and cyberterrorism.” According to the anti-graft agency, the defendants belong to a syndicate of 792 individuals engaged in cryptocurrency investment fraud and romance scams. The defendants were arrested on December 19, 2024, in Lagos during a surprise operation codenamed “Eagle Flush Operation” conducted by EFCC operatives. EFCC prosecutors, M.K. Bashir and R.A. Abdulrasheed, informed the court that on or about December 18, 2024, the accused persons “willfully accessed computer systems with the intent to destabilise Nigeria’s constitutional structure by procuring and employing Nigerian youths for identity theft, falsely representing them as foreign nationals to gain financial advantage.” The commission also accused them of “willfully providing false information to EFCC officers during investigations into their alleged cyber fraud activities.” The EFCC stated that their actions violate Sections 18 and 27 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) Act, 2015 (as amended in 2024), and Section 39(2) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act, 2004. After hearing the charges, the defendants pleaded not guilty. Following their pleas, Justice Aneke ordered their remand at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre pending trial. The court adjourned the case to February 21 and March 7, 2025. Punch

(Pictures)EFCC Auctions Forfeited Vehicles Online Monday

January 20, 2025 by admin

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has announced the e-auction of some forfeited vehicles to the public. The commission noted that the exercise is slated to take place on Monday, January 27, 2025, from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm, as it’ll be conducted online. Also, the exercise is spread across 16 lots with auctioneers in Abuja, Edo, Kwara, Sokoto, Kaduna, Lagos and Kano states. Interested persons can go through the official web addresses provided for each lot. A check by PUNCH Online revealed that some vehicles are still open to bids while some others have closed, as the vehicles have varying bidding amounts. According to a tweet via its X handle on Monday, the commission said the e-auction will be done according to the EFCC (Establishment) Act, 2004, Public Procurement Act, 2007 and the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery & Management) Act. “The General Public is hereby notified that the @officialEFCC through its appointed Auctioneers will conduct e-Auction of the under-listed vehicles that are subject to final Forfeiture orders in accordance with the EFCC (Establishment) Act, 2004, Public Procurement Act, 2007 and the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery & Management) Act, 2022,” the tweet partly read. Punch