1.5 Billion Traced To Ex Minister Of Finance Son’s Account
- Jumai
- Mar 14, 2016
- 2 min read
Investigation into the now controversial $2.1 billion arms deals funds has revealed that a whooping N1.5billion was paid to the account of the son of a former minister of finance.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the identity of the former minister and son is being kept in the secret so as not to jeopardise the investigation, The Nation newspaper is reporting.
EFCC said the bureau de change operator who gave them the information, Salisu Umaru, said: “I was invited by EFCC and when I reported, I was shown my company’s account statement with Zenith Bank called Jabama Ada Global Nigeria Limited in which there was an inflow of N500million on 5/2/2015 and N1billion on 16/4/2015 into the account from the Office of the National Security Adviser.
''On the inflow of N500million into my company’s account on 5/2/2015, I wish to state as follows : That on the same date(5/2/2015), I paid the equivalent of US$2,380,952 to the son of the minister, being the equivalent of the said N500million at the rate of N210 per dollar.
“I do not know what he used the money for. My own business is to buy and sell dollars. It is only the minister’s son that can explain what the money was meant for. The minister’s son signed and collected the said N500million.
''On the N1billion inflow into my company’s account on 16/4/2015, I wish to say the money was disbursed as follows: $1,000,000, being the equivalent of N220million; and $327,000 (equivalent of N72,600,000) were paid cash to the son of the minister while the sum of N704,400,000 was transferred to various accounts based on the instruction of the minister’s son. He gave some of the instructions through text messages. Some of the instructions were also received from the father.
“I also want to state that I do not know what the N1billion was meant for and what it was used for.”
Meanwhile, ex-president Goodluck Jonathan has reportedly summoned the former aides and ex-ministers over impeding probe in the $2,1 bn arms purchase scam.
The reports that current investigations of former Jonathan’s aides and calls for his own probe formed part of the discussion at the meeting.
