ICPC Drags Dikko To Court
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) will on Thursday next week arraign a former Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Abdullahi Dikko, and two others for allegedly stealing more than N1 billion.
The matter, suit number FHC/ABJ/CR/21/2019-FRN v Abdullahi Inde Dikko & Ors, is billed to come up before Justice Lucia Ojukwu of Court 7, Abuja Federal High Court.
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 also listed as defendants in the suit.
Imagine what that money can do??
— Odogwu Mobi
(@mobiuwakwe) December 28, 2017
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 Dikko and Makarfi of using the bank account of Hussaini’s firm to illegally receive the money.
The anti-graft agency further alleged that Hussaini within the same period between April 6 and December 2010 shared the money into various accounts.
Makarfi was accused of receiving $3 million 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 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 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 Dikko.
“Operatives of the commission’s Kaduna Zonal office acting on intelligence stormed the facility on February 28 and executed a search warrant which led to the recovery of the following items,” the EFCC said at that time.
abeg make them auction this wheels immediately before EFCC distribute am among themselves cos we no dey see all loots again
— Ibrahim Anibaba (@ib_ani) February 22, 2017
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.
Meanwhile, the federal government had included Dikko’s name in the list of looters released last year by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Muhammed.
The ICPC told the court that Dikko is currently on the run.
source https://www.naijanews.com/2019/02/06/see-details-of-how-ex-icpc-boss-abdullahi-dikko-and-two-other-officials-allegedly-stole-n1bn/
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