•Uncovered $37.5m Property Transaction Involving Minister, Bank MD.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is investigating a serving minister over her alleged involvement in the purchase of a property estimated to cost a whopping $37. 5 million.
The house was allegedly sold to the minister by a Managing Director (MD) of a bank, whose identity was not disclosed.
Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa, made the startling revelation, Tuesday, during an interview session on Channel Television’s Sunrise Daily, monitored by our correspondent in Abuja.
According to Bawa, the unnamed bank’s MD had approached the minister with the offer, which the latter eventually agreed to buy, after negotiations.
To under her seriousness, the senior government official was alleged to have made available the sum of $20 million, which was safely evacuated from her house, with the help of a vehicle provided by the bank.
The EFCC’s Chairman has, therefore, expressed worries that the real estate was fast becoming the sector of choice for alleged money laundering in the country, by corrupt officials.
“Let me just give you an example. We investigated a matter in which a bank’s MD (Managing Director) marketed a property to a Minister of the Federal Republic (of Nigeria), and the minister agreed to purchase that property.
“And then, of course, negotiations took place back and forth.
“At the end of the day, the minister agreed that, ‘yes’, she is interested in buying the property; agreed for $37. 5 million.
“Now, the bank sent a vehicle to her house, and then, in the first instance, $20 million was evacuated from her house.
“The bank succeeded in putting it into their system, and they paid the developer,” Bawa said.