EFCC probes 50 accounts, recovers N30 billion in Humanitarian Ministry case

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is intensifying its probe into 50 bank accounts linked to the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu. In the ongoing investigation, the EFCC has successfully recovered N30 billion allegedly involved in money laundering within the ministry.

According to a document titled “EFCC Alert,” released by EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede, significant arrests, prosecutions, and recoveries have been made by the commission in the past month. The recovered sum of N30 billion has now been deposited into the Federal Government’s accounts.

The document reads, “Update on Betta Edu investigation. We have laws and regulations guiding our investigations. Nigerians will also know that they are already on suspension, and this is based on the investigations we have done, and President Bola Tinubu has proved to Nigerians that he is ready to fight corruption.

“Moreover, concerning this particular case, we have recovered over N30 billion, which is already in the coffers of the Federal Government.

“It takes time to conclude investigations; we started this matter less than six weeks ago. Some cases take years to investigate. There are so many angles to it, and we need to follow through with some of the discoveries that we have seen. Nigerians should give us time on this matter; we have professionals on this case, and they need to do things right. There are so many leads here and there.

“As it is now, we are investigating over 50 bank accounts that we have traced money into. That is no child’s play. That’s a big deal. Then you ask about my staff strength.

“And again, we have thousands of other cases that we are working on. Nigerians have seen the impact of what we have done so far, by way of some people being placed on suspension and by way of the recoveries that we have made. You have seen that the programme itself has been suspended. We are exploring so many discoveries that we have stumbled upon in our investigation.

“If it is about seeing people in jail, well let them wait. Everything has a process to follow. So Nigerians should wait and give us the benefit of the doubt.”