Crime
EFCC presents more witnesses in Ex-Kwara Gov Ahmed’s case
Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
The Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has presented more witnesses to prove a case of alleged N5,78billion involving the immediate past Governor of Kwara State, Abdulfatah Ahmed, and his former Commissioner for Finance, Ademola Banu.
At the resumed hearing of the case on Tuesday, the sixth prosecution witness told Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin that the vouchers to borrow N1bn were raised by SUBEB officials.
The witness, Suleiman Oluwadare Ishola, who served as the Accountant-General of Kwara State between 2013 and 2019 had in his testimony on Friday, April 11, 2025, told the court that, the sum of N1bn being a matching grant from UBEC was borrowed by the Abdulfatah administration in 2015 to pay salaries of civil servants and pensioners.
Ishola maintained that neither of the defendants authorised the vouchers or received any direct payments from the borrowed funds.
His testimony corroborated the earlier testimony by Barrister Lanre Daibu, former SUBEB Chairman, who also confirmed receiving formal approval from the state government to access the UBEC matching grant for salary payments.
Following cross-examination by defence counsel J.A. Mumini (SAN) and Gboyega Oyewole (SAN), representing Ahmed and Banu respectively, Ishola was discharged from the witness box.
The prosecution then called its seventh witness (PW7), Stanley Ujilibo, an Assistant Commander of the EFCC, who was part of the investigation team.
Led in evidence by Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), Ujilibo narrated the sequence of events leading to the defendants’ prosecution. He told the court that the EFCC received a petition dated April 17, 2024, signed by the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Kwara State, Akande Idowu Ayoola, on behalf of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice. The petition alleged diversion of UBEC funds allocated for educational infrastructure across the state’s 16 local government areas.
To aid the investigation, the witness said that the EFCC wrote to UBEC requesting relevant documents and nominated personnel. In response, Hassan Abubakar, an Assistant Director at UBEC, provided action plans for the 2013–2015 fiscal years, detailing contractors’ names and project costs.
Ujilibo explained that states are required to pay a 50 percent counterpart contribution to access UBEC matching grants, and that project proposals must be defended before a UBEC committee before release of funds.
He added that the EFCC invited several key officials, including Lanre Daibu, SUBEB Director of Physical Planning Engr. Abdulsalam Olarewaju, former SUBEB Permanent Secretary Dr. Musa Dasuki, Accountant-General Ishola, and the then Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Benjamin Fatigun, all of whom made voluntary statements.
The witness said the EFCC also obtained financial records from Polaris Bank and Guaranty Trust Bank, which handled SUBEB accounts, to trace the flow and application of UBEC funds.
Ujilibo testified that both defendants were invited and they volunteered statements in the presence of their lawyers, without any form of coercion. The court admitted their extra-judicial statements as exhibits, as there was no objection from the defence.
Further hearing has been adjourned to October 16 and 17, 2025.
End
The Cross River Police Command has arrested three Egyptian nationals for allegedly assaulting a female security officer at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH).
The suspects Mohammed Ayan, 24; Mohammed Mohammed, 40; and Ahmed Mohammed, 20 were said to have entered the hospital premises around 12 noon on Monday to hawk household items, an act prohibited within the facility.
Zagazola confirmed from sources that a security officer, Christiana Ada Ewa, 34, attached to the hospital’s surveillance unit, attempted to stop the men from hawking when one of them, Ayan, allegedly assaulted her.
Her colleague, Ethan Ita Ansa, 24, intervened, resulting in a physical altercation between the parties. During the scuffle, Ansa’s uniform was torn and he sustained a finger injury, while Ayan also suffered bruises on his right eyebrow and knees.
Police detectives promptly visited the scene and arrested the suspects. The case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for discreet investigation.
A Nigerian Army officer, Lt. Samson Haruna, has died after sustaining severe burns when his wife allegedly set him ablaze during a domestic dispute at Wellington Bassey Barracks, Ibagwa, Abak Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom.
Zagazola Makama learnt that the tragic incident occurred on Sept. 22, 2025.
The source said the officer, who was also a medical doctor attached to the 6 Battalion Regimental Medical Officer (RMO), had a heated argument with his wife, Mrs. Samson Haruna, which resulted in her dousing him with petrol (PMS) and setting him on fire.
“The officer sustained severe burns and was immediately stabilised at the Military Reference Section (MRS) in the barracks before being evacuated to the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital for further management,” the source said.
The officer, however, succumbed to his injuries despite efforts by medical personnel to save his life.
It was further gathered that the suspect has been arrested and is currently in custody while an investigation into the incident is ongoing.
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has arrested a suspected armed robber and recovered a locally-made pistol and several stolen items in Gwagwalada Area Council.
Sources told Zagazola Makama that the arrest followed a complaint lodged by one Kabiru Ahmed of Kasuwan Dare, Gwagwalada, who reported that two men swapped his Moniepoint POS machine on Oct. 1, 2025, at about 2:55 p.m.
Detectives from the Gwagwalada Division swiftly acted on the report and apprehended one Abdul Abdullahi of Kano State, who confessed to being part of a syndicate notorious for POS swapping and robbery within the area.
The suspect named his accomplices as Yusuf Abdul, Mustapha Abba, Faruk, and Abu Chibola, and later led police operatives to their hideout in Angwan Dodo, Gwagwalada.
However, the other suspects escaped through the ceiling and roof of the building towards a nearby river upon sighting the operatives. One female suspect, Rahama Michael was arrested at the scene.
Items recovered include one fabricated locally-made pistol, six POS machines, seven ATM cards, 37 SIM cards, six wristwatches, and one axe.
The State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) has commenced a full investigation, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend the fleeing members of the syndicate.
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