Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested a former governor of Delta State, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, over alleged N1.3 trillion fraud.
Credible sources within the anti-graft agency confirmed that the vice presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections was arrested in Port Harcourt when he reported at the Port Harcourt Directorate of the EFCC.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Okowa was arrested for allegedly diverting N1.3 trillion being proceeds of 13 per cent derivation fund that accrued to the state during his tenure.
He was alleged to have diverted the fund from the Federation Account between 2015 and 2023 when he was governor of the oil-rich state.
Officials of the commission, who did not want their names in print, said that Okowa had earlier been invited by a team of crack detectives of the agency handling his case.
One of the sources said that he was arrested and would have to provide satisfactory answers to the questions posed to him regarding financial impropriety under his watch.
The former governor was also alleged to have failed to render accounts of the funds as well as another N40 billion he allegedly claimed he used to acquire shares in UTM Floating Liquefied Natural Gas.
Specifically, Okowa allegedly bought shares valued at N40 billion in one of the major banks in the country, representing eight per cent equity to float the offshore LNG.
When contacted, Dele Oyewale, the spokesman of the anti-graft agency, confirmed Okowa’s presence in the facility of the commission, but he declined further comments. (NAN)
