Nigeria arrests ex-minister convicted of laundering

Nigeria’s anti-graft agency has arrested former Power Minister Saleh Mamman, days after a court sentenced him in absentia to 75 years in prison for laundering 33.8 billion naira ($24.65 million), the agency’s chairperson said on Tuesday.

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission chief Ola Olukoyede said Mamman, who had been in hiding since his May 7 conviction, was arrested in the northern city of Kaduna overnight and is now in custody.

Olukoyede said Mamman had been “protected” while on the run and that two other suspects were arrested for harbouring him. Authorities are also investigating the property where he was found.

On May 7, a Nigerian court convicted Mamman on all 12 counts of corruption and money laundering involving funds tied to two government-backed hydroelectric projects: the 40-megawatt Gurara II project in Kaduna State and the 50-megawatt Dadin Kowa project in Gombe State.

He was sentenced to seven years in prison on each of 10 counts, and to three and two years on two counts, to run consecutively. The total sentence is 75 years, though Nigerian law allows sentences to run concurrently in some cases.

Mamman served as Minister of Power under former President Muhammadu Buhari from 2019 to 2021. He has consistently denied any wrongdoing. His lawyer was not immediately available for comment.

The EFCC said the investigation is ongoing and that more arrests are possible.

SOURCE: MRA