EFCC Arrests Energy Commission DG Over Alleged ₦500bn Fraud Probe

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested the Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, Mustapha Abdullahi, over an alleged ₦500 billion fraud and money laundering investigation.

Sources within the anti-graft agency disclosed that Abdullahi was taken into custody in Abuja as investigators intensify a probe into suspected financial misconduct linked to funds reportedly running into hundreds of billions of naira.

According to reports, EFCC operatives arrested the Energy Commission boss on Wednesday and are currently questioning him over allegations bordering on money laundering and diversion of public funds.

A source familiar with the investigation said the alleged transactions under scrutiny are estimated at more than ₦500 billion, making it one of the biggest corruption probes involving a federal agency in recent months.

Efforts to get official confirmation from EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report, with the commission yet to issue a formal statement on the arrest.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Abdullahi as Director-General of the Energy Commission in October 2023 as part of efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s energy transition and renewable energy development agenda.

The arrest comes amid renewed anti-corruption actions in Nigeria’s power and energy sector following recent high-profile investigations and prosecutions by the EFCC.