The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested former Speaker of the Plateau House of Assembly, Moses Sule, along with 14 other ex-lawmakers over alleged money laundering and abuse of office involving N2.5 billion.
EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.
According to the statement, the arrests were carried out by operatives from the EFCC’s Makurdi Zonal Directorate on Tuesday, following petitions from concerned citizens in Plateau State.
Oyewale said the former lawmakers were accused of breaching the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and were also linked to procurement irregularities.
Those arrested alongside Sule include Gwottson Fom, Sani Abubakar, Jwe Gwom, Timothy Dantong, Happiness Akawu, Cornelius Doeyok, Agbalak Ibrahim, Danjuma Azi, Fwangje Ndat, Salome Waklek, Namba Rimuyat, Nimchak Rims, Ishaku Maren, and Paul Datugun.
“Investigation showed that the former legislators spent only six months in office, during which the state government procured several luxury vehicles for them in their official capacities,” Oyewale stated.
“The said vehicles were valued at N2.5 billion. Upon leaving office, the vehicles were supposed to be returned to the state government but were taken away, and all efforts to retrieve them have failed.”
He added that due to the loss of those vehicles, the state government was compelled to purchase a fresh set for current members of the House of Assembly at a cost of about N2 billion.
Oyewale said the suspects would be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.
(NAN)