The
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on August 2, 2016 arrested a
level six officer of the Accounts Department of the Federal Airports Authority
of Nigeria, FAAN, Christy Olabode, for an alleged fraud to the tune of N100
million.
Also arrested was her younger
brother, Abdul-Shehu Obaze, a staff at the Commercial Department of FAAN in
Ilorin, Kwara State, and Dominic Ojo, an IT officer at FAAN Headquarters, Lagos.
Her arrest followed an anonymous petition,
which indicated that she allegedly diverted the said sum, by inserting names of
non-FAAN staff into its payroll. She allegedly conspired with Obaze, to
perpetrate the fraud.
Obaze was found to have maintained
not less than eight accounts in seven new generation banks, which were used to
receive the funds for onward distribution to “several high ranking officers
within the FAAN”.
The funds were being paid into his
various bank accounts with the narrative, “Furniture Allowance”. However, while
allowance for FAAN's furniture is usually paid once in three years, Obaze
received the “allowance” several times within a year.
Investigations carried out by the
EFCC revealed that the fraud had gone on since 2013. It unearthed a payroll
with names of many dead, retired and disengaged staff of FAAN listed against
Obaze's different bank accounts.
Upon interrogation, Obaze, a level
nine officer, confessed that other FAAN officials were involved in the massive
fraud, including Olabode's husband who works in the Human Resources department
of FAAN.
Olabode and Ojo currently enjoy
administrative bail, while Obaze remains in EFCC custody.
They would be charged to court as
soon as investigations are concluded.
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