The Federal High Court has issued an arrest warrant for Abdulsalamu Hudu and Umar Shuaibu Oricha in connection with a alleged N46 billion fraud involving the Kogi State government.
The order was granted by Justice Emeka Nwite on Tuesday, following a motion ex parte filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
According to the EFCC, Hudu and others allegedly withdrew N46,039,579,919.38 in cash from the Kogi State government’s account with Zenith Bank Plc between February 2016 and September 2021.
The anti-graft agency also alleged that the funds were fraudulently converted and used to acquire properties or renovate existing ones, according to Nairametrics.
The EFCC’s investigation officer, Audu Abubakar, stated that the agency received a damning intelligence report regarding monumental fraud perpetrated by former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello and some principal officers of the Kogi State Government.
The court order is part of the EFCC’s efforts to bring those involved in the alleged fraud to justice.
In the EFCC’s motion, its investigating officer, Audu Abubakar, told the judge that he is one of the officers assigned to investigate the “damning intelligence report received by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission regarding monumental fraud allegedly perpetrated by former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello and some principal officers of the Kogi State Government and their cronies, through which huge sums of money belonging to the Kogi State Government were fraudulently converted and used to either acquire properties outrightly or renovate already existing but dilapidated buildings within and outside the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court.”
He stated that the Kogi State Government has an account with Zenith Bank Plc and that between February 2016 and September 2021, Hudu was allegedly procured to make cash withdrawals totalling N46,039,579,919.38.
The officer also alleged that one C. Olufunke was similarly procured to make a cash withdrawal of N2,402,533,621 from the same account between March 23rd, 2016, and April 30, 2018.
He continued that in a desperate bid to integrate the funds into the economy as legitimate, Murtala Maigari and his associates were allegedly procured to keep in their custody large sums of cash out of the funds allegedly withdrawn by Abdussalamu Hudu and his cronies from the Kogi State Government treasury.
He stated that apart from Abdussalamu Hudu, Dauda Sulaiman was also allegedly procured “as a principal member of the syndicate specialized in conveying Kogi State Government funds to the care and custody of Murtala Maigari and associates.”
