The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arrested a self-acclaimed building engineer, Abdullahi Rilwan, for offences bordering on operating a land racketeering syndicate, criminal conspiracy, unlawful possession of classified documents, obtaining by false pretence and money laundering, a statement from the anti-graft agency says.
“Operatives of the EFCC had as part of investigation into the $2.1billion arms procurement fraud, visited the Kuje Area Council, Abuja. The visit was in connection with several properties in the area, suspected to be proceeds of money laundering,” Wilson Uwujaren, a spokesperson of the EFCC, wrote in an e-mailed statement on Thursday, November 3, 2016.
In the course of investigating the ownership of a filling station and a shopping complex both still under construction located along Pegi Road, in the Kuje Area Council, operatives gathered that Rilwan was in charge of the construction work.
Rilwan, who was subsequently engaged, denied ownership of the station, but confirmed he was the engineer in charge of the construction work.
He admitted to being the owner of the shopping complex. He also told operatives that he was the owner of two companies, Kaibo Oil and Gas and Kaibo Properties, but could not account for the source of wealth.
A visit to his office, however, revealed that he was involved in several shady and suspicious business transaction deals.
The revelation made EFCC operatives to beam their searchlight on Rilwan’s business activities. Subsequently, on October 31, a search and arrest warrant was executed at his Kuje residence.
The search unearthed several implicating documents in his custody, many of which he used to sell plots of land. Properties recovered from his residence in Kuje, include letter-head papers in the name of Kuje Area Council allocating plots of land, an “Irrevocable Power of Attorney” in favour of Air Commodore Bassey Inyang, a “Right of Occupancy” document granted to Henryville Farms, Abuja, among other implicating documents.
The filling station and the complex are currently under investigation, and he would be charged to court as soon as the investigations are concluded.
