EFCC begins investigation into $8.9billion UK court award against Nigeria

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has commenced investigation into the circumstances leading to the $8.9billion arbitral award against Nigeria by a United Kingdom Court over alleged breach of gas contract agreement between it and Process and Industrial Development Limited.

Chairman of the commission Ibrahim Magu made the disclosure, Friday in Abuja, playing host to a delegation from the Nigerian Diaspora Commission, led by the Chairman and Chief Executive, Hon. Abike Dabiri Erewa.

A press statement by the commission’s spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, said the anti-graft agency boss described the process leading to the judgment as “day light robbery”, and vowed that the commission would forensically investigate the transaction and bring anyone found wanting to book.

Magu, while expressing disappointment at the rising rate at which Nigerians embrace cyber crimes at home and abroad assured of the commission’s resolve to tackle the scourge of cyber crimes and to totally rid the country of them.

The acting chairman, who recalled the efforts of the EFCC in ridding Nigeria of cyber crimes, revealed that the commission partnered the FBI to fight cyber crimes in an exercise that was tagged “Operation Wire-wire”.

He disclosed that the commission recently commenced another operation against cyber crime, tagged “Operation Rewire” and expressed confidence on positive outcomes, just as he decried the search Nigerians are usually subjected to in other countries.

Earlier, Dabiri-Erewa sought for collaboration with EFCC towards effective combating of cyber crimes, being committed by Nigerians in the Diaspora.

She decried the rate at which Nigerians particularly the youth get involved in all manners of fraudulent activities in foreign countries, saying more efforts should be geared towards the combating of the crimes.

“It is very embarrassing to know that out of 80 suspected fraudsters you find, 70 are actually Nigerians,” she said.

According to her, “when things like these happen, they damage the image of the country,” noting that the bad reputation of a few Nigerians who commit crimes are affecting the rest of the citizens.

She urged the EFCC to tackle cyber crimes as effectively as it has been fighting the war against corruption.

“We hope that the EFCC will reassure the world that we are fighting cyber crime,” she said.

The two agencies, agreed that the EFCC will set up special desk to deal with fraud cases peculiar to Nigerians in the Diaspora.

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