Gov candidate’s aide bolts with raw cash

■ EFCC declares manhunt for suspect, detains bankers

FROM ADE ALADE, ABUJA

In an economy with about 40 million youths roaming the streets in search of elusive jobs, a governorship candidate in Katsina State, (names withheld by us) has lost a whooping N500 million campaign fund to one of his aides.

Saturday Sun gathered that the candidate who until last December was a prominent leader of the rul­ing Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in the state is currently vying for the governorship seat on the platform of the newly registered political parties.

Trouble began for the politician who represented a Katsina senato­rial district in the upper chamber of the National Assembly between 2007 and 2011, when he alerted his account officer at a branch of a new generation bank located along Gana street, Maitaima area of Abuja that some huge transfer will hit his ac­count.

The governorship hopeful there­after requested his account officer identified as Tunde to source for a bureau de change operator who will convert the money into US dollar for easy movement since he would want to withdraw half a billion naira in cash from the money.

It was also learnt that when the money was eventually converted into US dollars by a bureau de change operator in the area, it came to $3.2 million. He thereafter asked one of his aides identified as Fri­day to go bring the money already packed in $100 denomination in­side ‘Ghana must go’ bags from the bank.

Saturday Sun gathered that be­tween the bank and his house, the aide disappeared with the huge sum. Not ready to be exposed, the governorship hopeful did not report the matter to any law enforcement agency but instead compelled his bank to freeze the account of the bu­reau de change operator where the naira equivalent of the money was transferred.

Miffed by the bank’s decision to make him the scapegoat in the whole deal, the forex trader reported the matter to the Economic and Fi­nancial Crimes Commission, EFCC whose operatives on Thursday last week arrested the bank manager and his account officer while they continue their search for the fleeing aide. The bank officials were how­ever granted bail this week, precise­ly on Tuesday.

When contacted on the phone to get his own account of the in­cident, the politician first feigned ignorance of such incident. He later called our reporter back to know how Saturday Sun got the informa­tion. When told journalists don’t disclose such, he admitted the in­cident happened but stressed “not exactly as you stated.”

The Senator has had smooth po­litical career since the beginning of the current political dispensation in 1999 when he was elected a local government Chairman in Katsina, an office he held till 2002. In 2003, he was elected into the House of Representatives from where he got elected into the Senate in 2007.

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