The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has concluded plans to arraign a former Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Abdullahi Dikko, and two others for allegedly stealing more than N1 billion.
A former Assistant Comptroller-General of the agency in charge of Finance, Administration and Technical Services, Garba Makarfi, and Umar Hussaini, a lawyer and owner of Capital Law Office, are alleged to have conspired to commit the crime.
Dikko and two others will be arraigned in suit numbered, FHC/ABJ/CR/21/2019-FRN v Abdullahi Inde Dikko & Ors, billed to come up before Justice Lucia Ojukwu of Court 7, Abuja Federal High Court next week Thursday.
According to the charge sheet, they are accused of inducing the Managing Director of Cambial Limited, Yemi Obadeyi, to pay N1.1 billion (N1,100, 952,380.96) into the account of Capital Law Office as a refundable “completion security deposit” for the purchase of 120 units of duplexes as residential accommodation for officers of the Nigeria Customs Service.
The ICPC accuses Messrs Dikko and Makarfi of using the bank account of Mr Hussaini’s firm’s to illegally receive the money. The anti-graft agency further alleged that Mr Hussaini within the same period between April 6 and December 2010 shared the money into various accounts.
Mr Makarfi was accused of receiving three million dollars between April and December 2010, apparently as part of the proceeds of corruption.
ICPC’s legal officer, Ephraim Otti, in his affidavit sworn to on January 25, 2019, at the Federal High Court in Abuja, said the defendants were investigated for alleged violation of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000; Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006, and Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended).
According to Mr Otti, evidence from the investigation established a prima facie case against the accused.
Dikko, who was the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service between August 2009 and August 2015, has faced several allegations of fraudulently enriching himself and certificate forgery.
In 2017, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) seized 17 exotic vehicles from Mr Dikko, after Justice S. M. Shuaibu of the Federal High Court in Kaduna gave an interim order for their forfeiture to the federal government.
Less than a week after the forfeiture order, EFCC recovered dozens of brand new tricycles and motorcycles from a warehouse allegedly belonging to Mr Dikko.
The commission listed the recovered items to include: 42 brand new customised yellow-coloured tricycles; 16 brand new cargo motorcycles; one brand new white 32-seater Nissan civilian bus; one MAN diesel truck; 515 brand new imported rugs of different colours and sizes; two metal bulletproof safe with N1.565 billion and documents of transactions in different currencies within and outside the country.
Dikko, according to ICPC is currently on the run.
With additional report from PT
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