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Ex-Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, on Thursday spent a second night in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) amid protests by his lawyers over the search of his residence.

El-Rufai was initially detained on Monday by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and released late Wednesday.

He was, however, immediately taken into custody by the ICPC, where he has remained since.

An official of the anti-graft agency confirmed on Thursday night that the former governor was still in its custody but declined to disclose details of the investigation.

“He is still very much with us. I can’t say the offence he is being investigated for. I have not really been in the office, but I was informed that the former Kaduna State governor is still with us,” the source said.

The ICPC had earlier confirmed taking custody of El-Rufai on Wednesday night but similarly declined to state the specific offence under investigation.

There have been unverified claims linking the probe to the failed N11.1bn Joint Venture Kaduna light rail project, though efforts to independently confirm this were unsuccessful.

Repeated calls and messages to the ICPC spokesman, John Odey, were not returned as of press time.

Meanwhile, El-Rufai’s media aide, Muyiwa Adekeye, disclosed on X that operatives of the ICPC searched the former governor’s residence on Aso Drive, Abuja.

According to him, El-Rufai’s lawyer, Ubong Akpan, condemned the action as unlawful and a violation of due process.

“The Aso Drive residence of Malam Nasir @elrufai was today searched by the ICPC. Ubong Akpan, Malam El-Rufai’s lawyer, condemned the action as unlawful and a clear violation of legal procedures and fundamental rights,” Adekeye posted.

Before his arrest, El-Rufai had written to the ICPC through his lawyers, indicating his willingness to honour an invitation on Tuesday.

The letter followed an incident at the airport where his passport was reportedly seized by operatives of the Department of State.

Punch

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A United States federal court has sentenced a Nigerian national, Matthew A. Akande, to eight years in prison for orchestrating a cyber fraud scheme that defrauded the US government of more than $1.3 million.

The sentencing was announced in a statement published on the official US government website.

Akande, 37, who had been residing in Mexico prior to his arrest, was sentenced on Tuesday by US District Judge Indira Talwani at a federal court in Boston, Massachusetts. In addition to the prison term, the court ordered him to pay $1,393,230 in restitution and serve three years of supervised release upon completion of his sentence.

According to the statement, “A Nigerian national living in Mexico, who was extradited to the United States, was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for his role in a scheme to break into Massachusetts tax preparation firms’ computer networks and to file fraudulent tax returns.

“Matthew A. Akande, 37, was sentenced by US District Court Judge Indira Talwani to eight years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Akande was also ordered to pay $1,393,230 in restitution.”

Authorities disclosed that Akande was arrested in October 2024 at Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom at the request of U.S. officials.

He was subsequently extradited to the United States on March 5, 2025.

He had earlier been indicted in July 2022 by a federal grand jury on multiple charges, including conspiracy, wire fraud, unauthorized access to protected computers, theft of government funds and aggravated identity theft.

“Akande was arrested in October 2024 at Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom at the request of the United States and extradited to the United States on March 5, 2025.

“Akande was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2022 with one count of conspiracy to obtain unauthorized access to protected computers in furtherance of fraud and to commit theft of government money and money laundering; one count of wire fraud; four counts of unauthorized access to protected computers in furtherance of fraud; 13 counts of theft of government money; and 14 counts of aggravated identity theft,” the statement said.

Investigators revealed that between June 2016 and June 2021, Akande and his accomplices launched phishing attacks targeting tax preparation firms in Massachusetts.

The fraudulent emails were disguised as messages from prospective clients but were designed to trick recipients into installing remote-access trojan malware, including a program known as Warzone RAT.

“Between in or about June 2016 and June 2021, Akande worked with others to steal money from the United States government using taxpayers’ personally identifiable information (PII) to file fraudulent tax returns in the taxpayers’ names. The scheme also involved stealing taxpayers’ PII from Massachusetts tax preparation firms via phishing attacks and computer intrusions.

“To carry out the scheme, Akande caused fraudulent phishing emails to be sent to five Massachusetts tax preparation firms. The emails purported to be from a prospective client seeking the tax preparation firms’ services but in truth were used to trick the firms into downloading remote access trojan malicious software (RAT malware), including malware known as Warzone RAT,” the statement added.

Using the stolen data, prosecutors said the group accessed clients’ personal information and prior-year tax records and proceeded to file more than 1,000 fraudulent tax returns seeking over $8.1 million in refunds.

“Akande used the RAT malware to obtain the PII and prior year tax information of the tax preparation firms’ clients, which Akande then used to cause fraudulent tax returns to be filed seeking refunds.

“The tax returns directed that the fraudulent tax refunds be deposited in bank accounts opened by coconspirators in the United States. Once the refunds were issued, those coconspirators withdrew the stolen money in cash in the United States and then transferred a portion to third parties in Mexico, at Akande’s direction, while keeping a portion for themselves,” the statement continued.

Prosecutors stated that although more than $8.1 million in fraudulent refunds was sought, over $1.3 million was successfully paid out into accounts controlled by co-conspirators in the United States.

“In total, Akande and his coconspirators filed more than 1,000 fraudulent tax returns seeking over $8.1 million in fraudulent tax refunds over approximately five years. They successfully obtained over $1.3 million in fraudulent tax refunds,” the statement said.

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The Cross River State Police Command has dismissed social media reports claiming that former aide to President Muhammadu Buhari, Chief Okoi Obono-Obla, was kidnapped by unknown gunmen.

In a statement released on Thursday, Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Sunday Eitokpah, clarified that Chief Obono-Obla was lawfully arrested on January 19, 2026, at around 12:00 noon along Abuja Park, Ugep, Yakurr Local Government Area, following a petition submitted to the Commissioner of Police.

“The Cross River State Police Command wishes to address misleading reports circulating on social media alleging that Okoi Ofem Obono-Obla was kidnapped or taken by unknown persons.

The Command states unequivocally that Mr.Obono-Obla was lawfully arrested by police operatives pursuant to a petition alleging offences bordering on forgery and obtaining admission or professional qualification/entry into the legal profession by false pretence,” the statement said.

ASP Eitokpah added that the arrest was conducted in accordance with Nigerian law and under the constitutional and statutory powers of the Nigeria Police Force to investigate allegations of criminal conduct.

Following the arrest, Obono-Obla was taken to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) in Calabar, where investigations are ongoing. His legal counsel and relatives have been duly informed and are participating in the process.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Command categorically states that allegations of kidnapping or involvement of unidentified security outfits are false, unfounded, and entirely without factual basis,” the statement concluded.