ICPC Arraigns REA Director for N1.84bn Fraud

Abubakar Sambo, the director of REA, is charged by the ICPC with perpetrating fraud of N1.84 billion.

Abubakar Sambo, REA Director, Charged with N1.84bn Fraud. ICPC accuses Sambo of transferring funds to personal accounts, violating financial regulations. He pleads not guilty, granted N200m bail. Trial adjourned to October 17

Abubakar Sambo, the director of finance and accounting for the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), was charged on Monday by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission (ICPC) with financial fraud of N1.84 billion.

Sambo was charged with three counts of allegedly transferring the money to personal accounts when he appeared before Justice Bolaji Olajuwon of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

He did, however, enter a not guilty plea to the counts, and Osuobeni Akponimisingha, the ICPC's attorney, asked the court to set a date for the trial.

However, Sambo's attorney, Isiaka Dikko, SAN, notified the court that the prisoner had already submitted an application for bail.

Sambo was granted N200 million in bail with two sureties in the same amount by Judge Olajuwon because Akponimisingha did not object to the bail request.

According to the judge's ruling, the sureties had to have landed on property under the court's jurisdiction and had original certificates of occupancy, which they had to deposit with the deputy chief registrar.

She also mandated that sureties submit affidavits detailing their tax clearance throughout the previous three years, along with a passport photo for each.

Judge Olajuwon postponed the case to October 17 in order to start the trial.

The charge marked by the anti-corruption commission read as follows:

In a charge dated May 8 but submitted on May 10 by Akponimisingha, an Assistant Chief Legal Officer in the commission, the ICPC claimed that Sambo finalized the payment of N1.84 billion (N1,835,000,000.00) on the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) platform of REA sometime in March 2023 or thereabouts while serving as the Payment Finalizer.

It claimed that Henrrientta Onomen Okojie, Asuni Adejoke Aminat, Usman Kwakwa, Laure Shehu Abduilahi, Emmanuel Pada Titus, and Musa Umar Karaye used the funds in various tranches for a fictitious project supervision exercise without the necessary approval, which added to the REA's financial difficulties.

The Public Enterprise Regulatory Commission Act, CAP. P39, Laws of the Federation, 2004, Section 68, stipulates that the offense was against the law and subject to punishment, according to the commission.

In the second count, Sambo was charged with using his password to gain access to the REA's GIFMIS platform and completing the payment of N1.84 billion in several installments for the use of Okojie, Aminat, Kwakwa, Abdullahi, Titus, and Karaye in an alleged project supervision exercise without authorization.

Section 6(4) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) Act, 2015 was cited as the violation that the offense violated and the basis for punishment.

In count three, Sambo was accused of giving Okojie, Aminat, Kwakwa, Abdullahi, Titus, and Karaye corrupt advantages when he used his password to gain access to the REA's GIFMIS platform and paid N1.84 billion in installments for their alleged use in a project supervision exercise without the necessary approvals.

According to the ICPC, the offense violates Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act, 2000 and is punishable by law.

Justice Nwite equally admitted the three to a N50 million bail with sureties in the same amount during the hearing's Monday restart.

The documents shall be deposited with the deputy chief registrar of the court, per the judge's directive, who stipulated that the first surety must be a landowner within the court's jurisdiction and have an original Cofo.

According to his ruling, the second surety had to swear an affidavit of means and be a law-abiding person.

The trial was postponed until July 10 by Nwite.

Under the false pretense of project supervision, Okojie was accused in count one of the charge filed against her, FHC/ABJ/CR/203/24, of receiving N342 million in several tranches through her Access Bank Account, 0009022275, sometime in March 2023 or thereabouts, with the intent to defraud the REA.

According to Section 1(3) of the Advance Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006, the offense is considered to be against Section 1(1)(a) and is punished.