The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Saturday arrested the Chairman of the Police Equipment Foundation, Chief Kenny Martins, over allegations of mismanagement of over N50bn belonging to the Foundation.
Martins was reportedly arrested in his house in Abuja.
Some calls placed to the mobile phone of the Head of Publicity and Media in EFCC, Mr. Osita Nwajah, to seek confirmation were not picked up.
A highly placed source at the EFCC, who confirmed the arrest to our correspondent in Abuja, said the arrest followed Martins’ refusal to respond to invitations sent to him by the anti-graft agency over allegations of mismanagement against the foundation.
Earlier on Friday, the Deputy Chairman and assistant to Martins at PEF, Mr. Ibrahim Dumuje, was picked up by operatives of the commission as he attempted to board an aircraft to Lagos at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
The foundation, which was earlier named the Presidential Committee on Police Equipment Fund, was renamed PEF by Martins who claimed that it was a non-governmental organisation.
Martins is being accused of taking over the leadership of the committee and appropriating its functions without being answerable and accountable to anyone.
The source claimed that the EFCC was stepping up the probe following fresh disclosures on how funds were allegedly mismanaged.
The foundation reportedly spent over N5bn on car gifts in the guise of strengthening national security.
Government departments, security agencies, the National Assembly and individuals were said to have benefitted from the gifts.
Various security agencies like the State Security Service, the National Intelligence Agency, the Directorate of Military Intelligence and others, were said to have benefitted from the foundation’s largesse.
“The EFCC is also investigating the ease with which agencies in charge of national security were seduced with cars and the implication of this for national security,” the source disclosed.
A commercial bank is also being put under the searchlight for its role in the affair.
The fund was first set up in 2006 as Presidential Committee on Police Equipment Fund. The known founders included Martins and Dumuje.
The fund was meant to to assist in equipping the police.
Other security agencies and the armed forces however became enmeshed in the struggle to get fund from the Foundation.
A foundation member and Head of Operations and South-East Co-ordinator of the fund, Dr. Godson Ewulum, is the arrowhead of opposition against Kenny Martins, an in-law to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, his twin sister Taiwo, having been the former president‘s wife.
Ewulum had claimed that although he recruited Martins to join the project, he (Martins), in connivance with the Presidency, “hijacked the operation and usurped the role of National Co-ordinator.”
A substantial portion of the funds donated to the Police Equipment Fund was sourced from tax payers‘ money through the 774 local governments in the country, which jointly donated a whopping N7.78 billion.
The EFCC last Monday summoned Martins and others involved in the alleged mismanagement of funds to appear before it to answer to allegations.
Its investigation into the activities of the foundation followed a directive from President Umar Yar’Adua that it should look into allegations of financial corruption in the organisation.
The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Abubakar Sa’ad, who was the chairman of the board of PEF resigned his position last month over the scandal