The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned two former Managing Directors of Nigeria’s-owned Port Harcourt and Warri refineries over alleged money laundering linked to refinery rehabilitation funds.
The EFCC filed charges against the immediate past Managing Directors; Ahmed Adamu Dikko, and Jimoh Yisawu, over the alleged diversion and laundering of funds meant for refinery maintenance and rehabilitation before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
According to the suit, Dikko is facing a 12-count charge, while Yisawu is facing an eight-count charge.
The anti-graft agency alleged that both of them abused their positions by allegedly receiving funds from contractors handling refinery rehabilitation projects, concealing suspicious payments, and carrying out large cash transactions outside financial institutions in breach of Nigeria’s anti-money laundering laws.
The Commission recently recovered over N9.4 billion, $21.2 million, and several landed properties linked to the ongoing probe into refinery rehabilitation funds, noting that the case is one of the biggest corruption investigations involving the country’s oil sector in recent years.
The court’s documents alleged that Dikko allegedly engaged in multiple suspicious transactions involving contractors working with the Port Harcourt refinery.
One of the charges stated that in February 2024, he allegedly paid N218.375 million in cash for a property in Katampe Extension, Abuja, without routing the payment through a financial institution.
The EFCC said the transaction violated provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Prosecutors also accused him of retaining large sums allegedly received from contractors linked to refinery projects.
