ICPC returns N980m stolen funds to owners

THE Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) yesterday returned a total sum of N980 million to Federal Ministry of Environment and three Federal Government Colleges who are hitherto the original owners of the looted funds.

Handing over the recovered funds to the owners in Abuja yesterday, Chairman of the Commission, Mr. Ekpo Nta, said the Commission received a petition from the ministry in respect of a fraudulent electronic funds transfer from its accounts with a forged payment mandate in the sum of (N924 million) to the First City Monument Bank Plc. (FCMB) where the ministry’s account was domiciled.

According to him, the funds were meant for the Great Green Wall programme of the Federal Government to check desert encroachment through tree planting, adding that in fulfilment of their mandates in Section 6 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000 helped them in recovering the loots from the suspects.

Nta said that in furtherance to this case, ICPC is still tracking and investigating the alleged movement of N468,794, 613.79 through some financial institutions (Bureau de Change) by Adeolu Olugbenga Adeyanju, who is currently facing charges for forgery, theft, conspiracy and in possession of forged documents before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja.

While speaking on the second case, which involves the alleged diversion of funds for meal subsidies of students and capital projects of three Federal Government Colleges; namely, Federal Science Technical College, Ijebu-Imushin, Federal Government Girl’s College, Sagamu and Federal Government College, Odogbolu by the federal pay office in Abeokuta, Ogun State, was reported to the commission by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

He noted that the commission has so far recovered the sum of N56,211,086.23 out of the total sum of N103,000,000.00 which the suspect has diverted, stressing that investigations are ongoing in recovering the funds with co-operation from the suspect.
The chairman, however, charged all state governors that the bail-out funds given to them by the Federal Government would be monitored.