Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu on Wednesday said the agency has recovered $2.9 billion between May 2015 and October 2017.

While speaking at the ongoing 7th session of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption holding in Vienna, Austria, Magu said the commission had recovered $43 million from former Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

Background:

• The EFCC had accused Diezani of multiple cases of corruption. One of such prominent case is the disbursement of N23bn during the build-up of the 2015 elections as well as a corruption case in the UK.
• The former minister had approached the court twice, seeking for an order to allow her return to Nigeria to defend herself.

What Magu said:

• He said the sum does not include smaller amounts in Durham, CRA and British Pound.
• Magu added that the forfeiture order fraud act has helped recovered a lot of loots.
• He added that progress has been made in cases related to Abacha loot, Malabu Oil, Diezani and associates, and the arms procurement scandal.

“Within this year alone, the commission recovered stolen assets running into several millions of US Dollars and billions in naira,” he said.

“These include the sum of $43 million recovered from Deziani Allison-Madueke, Nigeria’s former Minister of Petroleum and N2 billion spread in seven accounts within three Nigerian banks laundered from the Federal Capital Territory Police Command Salary Accounts.”

Azeez