According to Punch newspaper, EFCC has arrested the MD and CEO of Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, and some officials for allegedly receiving $115m from a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.
The EFCC also arrested the bank’s Head of Operations, Mr. Martins Izuogbe, for his role in the alleged scam, which the anti-graft agency described as unprecedented. Reportedly, during the build-up to the 2015 presidential election, Diezani invited Okonkwo to help her handle some cash, which would be disbursed to electoral officials and groups.
The fraud was uncovered when the EFCC began investigations into how officials of INEC in Rivers, Delta and Akwa Ibom states received N675.1m, as funds disbursed were traced to Fidelity Bank. Punch source said: “We invited the MD, who then confessed to us that during the build-up to the presidential election, Diezani invited him to a meeting in Abuja.
Diezani told him that some companies would deposit some funds in his bank and that she would give him further instructions on how the funds would be disbursed. The first company, Auctus Integrated, deposited $17m into the bank. The 2nd company, Northern Belt Gas Company, deposited $60m while another company, Midwestern Oil and Gas, deposited $9.5m.
A 4th company, Leno Laitan Adesanya, deposited $1.85m while the MD himself received $26m in cash.” The source alleged that Diezani’s son, Ugonna Madueke, later served as a middleman between the former minister and the MD of the bank.
He said it was Diezani’s son who forwarded the names of the beneficiaries of the funds, which included INEC officials and several interest groups as well as election monitors, who were expected to compromise the electoral process. The total amount of money was $115m and Diezani told the bank to convert the funds into naira, which was about N23.3bn at the time.
The source stated that Diezani did not operate any account with the bank and wondered why Okonkwo would allow himself to be used in such a manner. Okonkwo may be charged with conspiracy once we are done with investigations.
