EFCC Arrests Stallion MD For N1.25bn Gift To Yuguda

The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission has arrested the Managing Director of Stallion Group, Harprrie
Singh, over an alleged N1.25bn gift to former Minister of State for Finance,
Bashir Yuguda.

Investigation revealed that the
conglomerate was among some companies that were being investigated by the EFCC
in connection with the arms purchase under the former National Security
Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.).

It was learnt that the EFCC’s task
force, investigating the arms procurement scandal, invited Singh when his
company’s name came up in an investigation into a transaction between the
former NSA and Jabbama company, a Bureau De Change operator.

The operatives were said to have
discovered that Stallion group paid N1.375bn to the firm, which later returned
N100m of the funds to the conglomerate.

A top operative of the commission
said Jabbama converted the money to $114,750,000 and handed them over to
Yuguda.

The former Minister is facing
prosecution at the Federal High Court Abuja for alleged fraud and money
laundering.

It was further stated that Yuguda
told EFCC interrogators that he collected the fund at the instance of the
former NSA for political purposes.

The top operative said Singh was
still being grilled by the operatives as of the time this story was filed by
9pm on Thursday.

The source added that the Stallion
boss told his interrogators that he had a contract of $170m with the ONSA to
supply some vehicles.

He was said to have claimed that
the first batch of 50 vehicles were supplied in November, 2014, but said the
payment was still outstanding.

It was learnt that the operatives
were interrogating the Stallion boss for routing the seeming political donations
through the NSA and not through political parties.

The operatives were said to be
probing the possibility that the ‘donation’ by the firm could be an inducement
for contracts award from the ONSA.

Efforts to get the Head, Media and
Publicity of the EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, for his comment on the reported
arrest of Singh did not succeed as of the time of filing this report.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of EFCC,
Mr. Ibrahim Magu, has called for legislation that would put a time frame on the
trial of corruption-related cases in the country.

Magu appealed to the Senate
Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes to explore the possibility of
using the strategy for the amendment to the provisions of the Electoral Act, to
specify a time frame for the trial of corruption-related cases.

He said this provision would help
to intensify the campaign against graft in the country, especially for the
effective prosecution of such cases in courts.

Magu lamented that several
corruption-related cases had lingered in court for years because of the absence
of the requisite time frame.

Punch