Anti-graft agency the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has nabbed former Power Minister Saleh Mamman, who was recently convicted and sentenced by the Federal High Court in Abuja for misappropriating funds during his tenure in office.
The Chairman of the EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, confirmed that Mamman was arrested at about 3:30 am on Tuesday.
According to the anti-graft agency, the former minister was arrested in Kaduna State alongside two other persons said to have been protecting him.
Olukoyede said Mamman was picked up by operatives of the commission in Kaduna following the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which had ordered security agencies to arrest him.
The EFCC chairman added that the house where the former minister was arrested was currently being investigated.
He said the two persons arrested with Mamman were also being questioned by investigators.
The arrest came days after the court sentenced the former minister over allegations bordering on money laundering and diversion of funds linked to power projects.
Mamman had been convicted and sentenced by the Federal High Court in Abuja after he was found guilty of financial crimes committed while he served as Minister of Power.
The court had ordered that the sentence should take effect from the date of his arrest.
The order paved the way for security agencies to take steps to locate and arrest the former minister.
His arrest is expected to begin the enforcement of the judgment delivered against him by the court.
The commission said the residence where Mamman was arrested had become part of its ongoing investigation.
Although details of the probe were not immediately disclosed, investigators are expected to examine whether the property or persons found there had any link to attempts to shield the former minister from arrest.
The two persons arrested with him are also expected to provide information on their role and relationship with the convicted former minister.
Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had sentenced the former power minister to 75 years in prison over a ₦33.8 billion fraud case.
The court found Mamman guilty on a 12-count charge of conspiracy and money laundering linked to the Zungeru and Mambilla hydroelectric power projects.
The judge ordered that the sentences should run consecutively and commence from the date of Mamman’s arrest.
The court also directed security agencies, including Interpol, to arrest him wherever he was found and hand him over to the Nigerian Correctional Service to serve his jail term.
Mamman was sentenced in absentia after being convicted on all 12 counts filed by the EFCC, adding that the case involved funds linked to major hydroelectric projects, including Mambilla and Zungeru.
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