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[Just In] 538M Scandal: EFCC Allegedly Arrests Zenith, Providus, Jaiz Banks CEOs
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has allegedly arrested the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of Zenith, Providus, and Jaiz banks.
The bank chiefs were allegedly arrested in connection with financial misappropriation and fraud linked to the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, and her predecessor, Sadiya Umar-Farouk.
According to the Peoples Gazette, the banking executives are now in EFCC custody, multiple credible sources within the Presidency confirmed on Tuesday.
Naija News reports that the EFCC is investigating numerous instances of substantial public funds directed into private accounts, an action sanctioned by Edu and Farouq using their position as ministers.
Farouq, who oversaw the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development under the previous administration, is also under investigation for the mismanagement of at least N37 billion in public funds designated for the conditional cash transfer programme of then-President Muhammadu Buhari.
The large-scale movement of funds into private accounts was partly facilitated by a potential deliberate oversight in flagging suspicious transactions —a responsibility banks bear under various anti-financial crime laws and Central Bank directives, the sources told The Gazette.
