The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday announced the discover of about N1billion cash withdrawal by the Kwara State Government from an account domiciled with Sterling Bank.
It said the money was disbursed a week before the Presidential and National Assembly elections.
Those arrested and being interrogated at the Ilorin Zonal Office are Commissioner for Finance Nurudeen Banu; Accountant-General Sulaiman Ishola; Commissioner for Water Resources Yusuf Abdulkadir; Head of Service Susan Modupe Oluwole.
Others are Special Adviser Commissioner for Energy, Eleja Taiwo Banu; Chief of Staff, Abdulwahab Yusuf; officials of the Secretary to the State Government, and those of the Government House.
According to The Nation, an official of the State Government, Hafees Yusuf, confirmed to the operatives that he got instructions from his “boss” to withdraw some monies sometimes in February 2019.
He said: “My Controller of Finance told me that the sum of N350m was paid into the account of Kwara State Government, and I was instructed by my boss to raise cheques of various sums of monies, which I did and were duly signed by the Controller of Finance; I withdrew the monies as I was instructed by my supervisor.”
A senior staff of Sterling Bank, who is currently being interrogated by operatives, revealed that the Accountant General, Commissioner for Finance and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, are signatories to the account where N720m cash was withdrawn from the Kwara State Government Account domiciled in the branch of the bank located at Post Office in Ilorin between February 7 and 11, 2019.
Three Relationship Managers of the bank – Rahaman Alimi, Akinleye Ademola and Olarewaju Sarafa, were said to have parked the said money in bullion van and personally delivered it to the Chief of Staff to the Kwara State Governor, Abdulwahab Yusuf.
The bank officials further told operatives that they acted on the instruction of their “boss” which was identified as, Rasaq Abolarin.
Meanwhile, the officials of the Kwara State Government officials have been granted administrative bail, even as investigations continue.
They are expected to be arraigned before a Federal High Court in Ilorin next week.
The Acting Head of Media and Publicity of EFCC, Mr. Tony Orilade confirmed the arrest of the suspects and the administrative bail given to them.
