IG’S MEN INVESTIGATE HOW CORPORAL, ON N47, 000 SALARY BECAME A BILLIONAIRE

*13 buildings, hotel, 10 choice cars and N100m recovered

* Dollars buried in pit, believed taken by relatives

* Corporal became billionaire within a year

Juliana Francis

The story of police corporal Collins Ezenwa 31, father of one, who embraced crime while still on active duty as a cop started in Imo State.

Ezenwa was a vulcaniser, but sometimes in 2009, he decided to enlist into the Nigeria Police.

He had a charming personality and warmed his way into the heart of a senior police officer, Taiwo Lakanu, who is now an Assistant-Inspector General of Police (AIG). Lakanu made him his personal driver.

Nobody knows for such when Ezenwa took to crime, but it was clear he lived a double life. Like most policemen his rank, he was on a N47, 000 monthly salary. He, however, lived a life of opulence.

What everyone knows for a fact today, is that Ezenwa became stupendously rich. Before then he dated an undergraduate identified as Gift, who he finally walked down the aisle with.

He was so rich that he had to quit his N47, 000 paying police job. He bought at least 13 buildings in different states, bought a hotel and had 10 choice cars in his possession, two tippers and trucks. When his some of his houses were searched, police recovered three AK47 rifles. It was further alleged that he buried dollars in a pit, which some of his family members had allegedly disappeared with.

In a particular street in Enugu State, he was alleged to have bought two buildings and used to flit from one to the other to sleep. He opened a fixed deposit account, using his wife as one of the signatories.

The money in the account was N100m and the account officer is his wife’s brother. Detectives have since discovered that before Ezenwa married his wife, she had less than N20, 000 in her bank account.

Ezenwa resigned from the police as a corporal on N47, 000 monthly salary in November 2017, and travelled to Malaysia for only a month. He returned from Malaysia to start spending money like King Croesus, buying buildings, cars and businesses.

A brief glance at his timeline showed that he joined police in 2009, started making billions in 2017 and was killed on January 27, 2018. He was estimated to be worth billions and has a multi-billion naira properties scattered all over eastern states. With his wealth came a nick name, E-Money. It is strongly suspected that Ezenwa had been hobnobbing with criminals even while working as a police, who was supposed to fight against crimes and criminals.

IRT uncovered during it investigations that Ezenwa, a mere Corporal, working with the Imo State Police Command, had links with robbery gangs, who specialised in hijacking oil vessels on the high sea and selling off its products to waiting buyers. 

“Ezenwa bought several choice properties including hotels and exotic cars within Imo, Abia and Enugu State, within the space of two years. One of his friends Onyekere, advised him to quit his police job and travel out of the country as people may start suspecting that he could have made his money through crime. E-money left his police job, traveled out of the country for weeks and when he returned he bought a hotel in Enugu and made a deposit of N100m to a fix deposit account  which is wife was also a signatory,” said a police source.

IRT commenced investigations into the activities of  Ezenwa in October 2017, Emmanuel and David Ofong, were kidnapped along the Nsukka Kogi Road, Enugu, by a gang of kidnappers and a ransom  of $2million was demand and paid for the release of  one of the victims, David Ofong. The kidnappers held on to Emmanuel Ofong and demanded for additional money.

IRT went into the case and through the aid  advance technology was able to establish that Ezenwa was the man behind the kidnapping.

The police source said: “We had difficult arresting him  because he was always moving in and out of the country, and he moves with various vehicle numbers.  Shockingly, we heard, in 2018, that he has been killed alongside two members of his gang. But since Chief Emmanuel Ofong, who he kidnapped was still missing, we continued our case with the hope to arrest more other members of his gangs.”

He continued: “In the process, we arrested a banker working for him and he informed us that his wife had a fix deposit account credited with N100m and we also arrested a property agent who assisted him in buying his properties. We learned that all the vehicles bought by Ezenwa were taken into hiding by relatives and we went after them and succeeded in recovering some of them.”

Ezenwa’s downfall started after a gang of kidnappers were arrested by operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) Imo State Police Command.

The SARS men ordered the suspects to leave their phone lines open. They had many calls; one of their callers was Ezenwa. The corporal, unaware he was speaking on an open line, allegedly said too many implicating things, while being egged by his partners in crime, who were already down.

The SARS men began a meticulous and painstaking plan on how to catch Ezenwa and smash his gang. While SARS operatives in Imo State were hunting for a robbery gang, IRT men were looking for the kidnappers that abducted a politician and then Chief Emmanuel Ofong.

A Police source said: “Four of his buildings, including a hotel, were recovered in Enugu State. Seven were traced to Owerri and Okigwe areas of Imo State, while one was traced to Aba, Abia State. Seven cars, two SUVs, one Hilux truck, a commercial bus, two tipper-lorries and a trailer truck were equally recovered at different locations within the South-East. All the seized property are currently registered as exhibit in custody of the Police and a motion to have them forfeited have been filed in Owerri High court.

Controversy has, however, continued to trail the death of Ezenwa, with human rights activists insisting that he was killed by the police while driving in his car with his two cousins. The rights activists however agreed that Ezenwa’s wealth was inexplicable and mind-boggling.

A hotel linked to Ezenwa in Enugu was estimated to worth N220, 000,000. He also had two duplexes and eight blocks of flats worth a combined N180m.

One of the victims abducted by Ezenwa’s gang is honourable Tochukwu Okeke, living in Enugu State. He was released after paying ransom. That would be the second Okeke had been kidnapped for ransom. The first time, he was kidnapped along with his wife. Okeke said that both experiences were quite traumatizing.

After he was released, he went to lodge a complaint with the Inspector-General of Police Special Intelligence Response Team (IRT), led by a Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari. The Unit started investigation.

The IRT operatives were still trying to track and nail the kidnappers of Okeke, when Ezenwa was shot and killed.

The gory pictures of his corpse were sighted by many people on the Internet. One of those that saw the picture was Okeke. He identified the corpse to IRT operatives.

Thus, SARS, Imo State Command, had to handover the investigation to IRT Unit to synergise and conclude its ongoing kidnap investigation. The investigation is still being handled by IRT, Lagos branch, headed by a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), Philip Rieninwa. This means the investigation is led by Rieninwa.

Although Kyari is the head of IRT Unit nationwide, but his office is at Abuja. He can only be contacted on major decisions and if his expertise and strategy is needed to crack a case that was beginning to prove difficult.

It was in the course of the investigation that the operatives found out that Ezenwa was obscenely rich. They also discovered that he had fleet of cars, houses, hotel and money. His wife was invited and quizzed.

IRT froze accounts belonging to Ezenwa, making it impossible for Gift to make withdrawals. Gift, incidentally is a nursing mother; life became too tough for her.

The case took another twist after Gift went to Human rights activists, including Amnesty International to alleged that IRT operatives were attempting to take over her late husband’s businesses and property.

She also claimed that Rieninwa and other Lagos detectives were withdrawing money from her husband’s account for their private pockets and collecting rent on her husband’s building in Enugu State.

A researcher with Amnesty International, Damian Ugwu, who worked on the case, alleged that IRT personnel started aiming for Ezenwa’s properties immediately they took over the case from the Imo State Police Command.

Amnesty International disclosed that it was able to locate two bank accounts, with eastern names, where IRT operatives allegedly compelled Ezenwa’s tenants to be paying money into.

Ugwu noted: “IRT dubiously took over the case from Imo State Command and started identifying possible assets of Ezenwa shortly after he was killed. They threw his wife and infant son out of some of his properties, including his hotel, and started collecting rents from them. More than a year later, they have not approached any court for an order to confiscate the properties. Our findings showed that they were just collecting rents and putting the money in private accounts for their own use.”

Ugwu explained that Ezenwa was four months pregnant when her husband was killed. She gave birth on June 17. She was arrested less than two months later on August 11 and taken to Lagos, where she was detained for two weeks. She spent two nights in police custody in Enugu before being moved to Lagos, she said.

According to Gift, IRT operatives ordered her release without charges on the grounds that she would bring all the original titles of the properties to them, a demand she found suspicious. But even without giving the documents to them, IRT ordered all identified properties confiscated.

Ugwu further disclosed that Ezenwa’s hotel, De-Inglish Hotels and Resort in Enugu, estimated at N220m, had been taken over by the IRT, which allegedly had been receiving proceeds of lodging and other services to private bank accounts.

“Eight blocks of flats on 21, Edinburgh Road, New Layout, Enugu, which was also linked to Ezenwa, is now being managed by the police squad,” Ugwu alleged.

The two Zenith bank accounts bear names of; Tochukwu Okeke and Ozougwu Stanislaus.

Amnesty International warned IRT to cease further victimisation of Gift and demanded immediate return of her late husband’s properties to her until there was a court pronouncement on the matter.

Ugwu added: “No one really knows how Ezenwa made his money. But for a police team that has long portrayed itself being devoid of criminality to expropriate the properties he left behind without any court order is unfortunate. Several family members and associates of Ezenwa were also arrested and victimised, triggering a slew of fundamental rights suit at various jurisdictions in the Southeast. All the cases about the matter in different courts have to do with police abuses and people begging the courts to save them from police harassment and confiscation of their properties without any evidence they were fully or partially-owned by Ezenwa. But there is no single case that was instituted by the police for the confiscation of any of Ezenwa’s property or those of others that the police have taken over illegally.”

Gift said that all her bank accounts were frozen, leaving her in penury with her six-month-old baby. She accused IRT of seizing the only N50,000 she had on her when she was picked up in August 2017 and put through a harrowing experience with her infant in an unkempt detention facility.

Gift and Amnesty International spoke with some online journalists and the story was published. The story, however, alleged Kyari of rights violations and money diversion, even though the investigation was led by the Lagos State office, under supervision of Rienniwa. Kyari had since denied the allegations leveled against him and members of his Unit. Kyari had also threatened to press defamation charges against online journalists defaming his name.  

Kyari explained that Gift was arrested and detained because she was a suspect in the alleged crimes of her late husband, and was granted tentative bail without charges as a nursing mother.

But Barrister Nosa Uhumwangho, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), said he had filed for forfeiture of the asset at a federal court, he admitted first hearing would come up in January 28.

Uhumwangho explained that IRT got a banker’s order to freeze the account containing the N100m, adding that  they also recovered the buildings and vehicles belonging to the late suspected kidnapper before filing a motion for the temporarily forfeiture of funds, buildings and properties and cars belonging to the late suspect, in a suite marked FHC/OW/CS/180/2018, before the Federal High Court Owerri.

Uhumwangho, said  that all the vehicles recovered are in police custody while the buildings are yet to be sealed as the police is yet to obtain a court order to that effect.  He added that most of the buildings are currently being occupied by tenants and no one is taking rents from them pending an order from the court. 

He also added that a relative to Gift, had previously filed fundamental human right suit against the police over recovery of the properties and freezing of the bank accounts and the matter is before High Court of Okigwe on suite number HO/4/2018.  

Reacting to allegations leveled against him, Kyari said: “We have nothing to do with a private account carrying names of people from the south east, flaunted by late suspect’s wife, in this BVN era bank accounts can easily be investigated and cash movements and owners can easily be traced for questioning. These are all lies from the wife of Ezenwa whom we refused to negotiate with. The family of Ezenwa was begging to settle with us, but we refused then and then, they vowed to spend money to destroy our names. The Ezenwa’s wife, who jumped bail given to her because of her small baby and is on the run, she is vowing to enjoy the proceeds of Ezenwa’s crime as if there’s no law in this country.”

Kyari, who said his name was linked to unknown accounts carrying names of people from south east, has threatened to sue those that defamed him.

“Moreover, all the exhibits, including houses and vehicles and the N100ma cash we froze in the late kidnap kingpin’s bank account using  court order are intact as motion for the forfeiture of the properties and money freeze in the bank account to the federal government are before Owerri High Court,” said Kyari. 

He added: “We are not relenting; we are used to this type of baseless accusations coming when uncompromising officers are handling cases of big and billionaire kidnappers like this. Everybody saw the lies from Evans billionaire kidnapper, his lawyers and wife. The moment you refused to negotiate with them, they will sponsor lies against you. Had it been we agreed to negotiate with the family of Ezenwa and collected N50m, 50 percent of what we froze in the kidnapper’s account, nobody would have heard of this case. We have nothing to hide, we want anybody or organization to investigate this matter and see the truth.”

Kidnapped victim: Why I took over collection of  rent from Ezenwa’s tenants

Honourable Tochukwu Okeke is an Enugu State based politician, who was kidnapped by Ezenwa and his gang. He disclosed that he had to sell his landed property in order to pay for his freedom.

According to him, Ezenwa and his men abducted him at Nsukka area of Enugu State, on his way back from Abuja.
He was blindfolded before he was taken into the forest where he was kept for six days before a ransom of $2million was paid as ransom.

He said that while in captivity, he instructed his lawyer to sell off one of his landed properties located in New-layout, an upscale area of Enugu and depleted his domiciliary account. The funds were meant for his children’s school fees, in Canada. 

Speaking with our reporter on phone, he admitted that tenants of Ezenwa were actually paying money into two accounts, which emanated from him. He said that he was surprised to read a publication, where it was alleged that Kyari and his men were collecting the rent and diverting same.

Listen to him: “My name is Honorable Tochukwu Okeke, I reside in Enugu State. I work with the government. I am the Senior Special Adviser (SSA) on security to the government. I was kidnapped about two years ago. After I was released, I reported to IRT. I had heard about their achievement with Evans. E-Money and his men took my money, which was part of what I wanted to use to pay my children school fees in Canada. I  kept record of the ransom I paid.  After that, I checked the phone number, the kidnappers used in collecting ransom from me. IRT started tracking the number. When he was killed, I checked his picture and  identified him. He was among those that used to come to see us in the bush where we were held hostage. I had earlier been kidnapped in 2013 in Enugu here. When I was kidnapped this time again, I thought it was the same men. I was scared. I negotiated with them because I wanted them to spare my life. I remembered that it was E-Money, who said that if my family made arrangement with police to rescue me, that he would shoot and kill me.

He said that bullets couldn’t penetrate him. He had charms on his body and arms. He was later killed when he went for another kidnap operation in Owerri. I remembered running to and fro, to IRT office in Lagos and Abuja report the case because the Unit didn’t have office in Enug State.

I thought E-Money would be caught alive. I didn’t know he could be shot and killed. I thought bullet couldn’t penetrate him. Even while we were held hostage, he was always making incantations. It was because of my first abduction, in 2013, whereby they kidnapped my wife and I, that I relocated my family. I moved my family to Port-Harcourt, from there I moved when again when politics of 2015 started heating up. I relocated my family to Canada.

After my abduction by E-Money, I went to IRT and wrote my statement. During investigations, IRT men discovered some of E-Money property in Enugu State.

About four properties were discovered; one hotel and three other buildings. He was staying in two duplexes; the two duplexes are empty, nobody lives there for now. He bought the hotel after I paid my ransom. Two of his buildings in Enugu are empty. The third building is the only that has tenants.

I went to the house and discovered that the people had been living there without paying rent. I met one of tenants, who introduced himself as the caretaker; he said that their rent had expired. I told him that the house is a proceed of crime; and that it belonged to a criminal. I also told him that issue of the house was in court. They said they were aware of the case. I told them they have to pay rent to government. Later the man called and told me that other tenants said they had rather pay rent before a lawyer and would also like to collect receipt. Before them, one of the had paid into my account.

I told them that I would introduce a lawyer, who would be collecting the rent from them on behalf of the government. The lawyer will remit the money when the matter finally comes up in the court. I was hoping that the court will take the money and share to E-Money’s victims after the court trials. My lawyer said the matter was coming up in Owerri that he would go there to give them his own report. The case is already in court in Owerri, but my lawyer wants to follow up the case to know what is happening. The case was filed in Owerri by IRT.

There was a time IRT came to take snapshots and details of Ezenwa’s property. Police have nothing to do with the rent collection. One of the tenants paid N300,000 into my account. The money is still there, untouched. Others paid into my lawyer’s account. I told all the tenants that the money would be remitted to the court. They needed to pay the government, rather than continue to live in the house for free.

What he wanted to do is that when the case comes up he will go with the money to the court. It’s only one building that the government is collecting rentfrom; I don’t know about the others.

For six months IRT trailed E-money with the phone number which was used for the negotiation. I discovered I wasn’t the only victim that was hunting for him because he was showing up in various location at different times. Luckily, the news came in from Imo State that E-money has been killed by the police in that state and I went to the police and identified his corpse.  I am convinced that my money was used to acquire some property. I have an established case that my money was used by E-money to buy a four-story building. There was no way I would have folded my hands and watch people live in a property bought with my sweat for free when the case has not been decided. I want my money back.”