EFCC uncovers a fresh $73m thought to belong to Diezani stashed away in Fidelity Bank

ECONOMIC and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officials have uncovered an additional sum of $72.87m though to belong to former petroleum minister Diezani Allison-Madueke stashed away in a Fidelity Bank account.

Oil minister during the tenure of former president Dr Goodluck Jonathan, Ms Alison-Madueke has been the subject of a series of corruption probes, with the federal high court in Nigeria confiscating some of her assets and handing them over to the government. Under investigation both in Nigeria and the UK, Ms Alison-Madueke, who was in office between 2011 and 2015, has been accused of participating in largescale corruption, including using her position to allocate lucrative oil wells to close associates worth billions of dollars.

Since leaving office, Ms Alison-Madueke has taken refuge in the UK, where she was arrested and granted bail pending the filing of formal charges against her. Ms Alison-Madueke  has been asked to forfeit UK properties worth over £11m and been forced to forfeit about N7.6bn hidden in a Nigerian bank to the government, amid claims that she cannot account for a sum of $2.5bn that went missing under her watch as minister.

In a fresh revelation, EFCC spokesman Wilson Uwujaren, said that Nnamdi Okonkwo, a former managing director of Fidelity Bank, has been arrested in connection with the money. He explained that Mr Okonkwo, who is presently the chairman of First Bank Holding, had been grilled over two accounts said to be worth $115m and $153m respectively by the commission.

Mr Uwujaren said: “While all the $153m was recovered by the EFCC, the cases involving $115m, as it relates with the Independent National Electoral Commission bribery matter, is in various courts. Okonkwo and Charles Onyedibe are currently being detained by the EFCC over the whereabouts of the new $72.87m.”