Wike, NIA battle over ownership of N13bn seized by EFCC

Controversies surrounding ownership of the N13bn ($43.4m, N23m and £27,000) found by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission at the Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos, took a dramatic turn on Friday evening when Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and the National Intelligence Agency claimed ownership of the money.

The National Intelligence Agency on Friday said the money belonged to it.

A national daily had earlier reported that the money belonged to the NIA. Sources at the agency confirmed to one our correspondents late Friday that the money belonged to the agency and that it had written a formal letter to President Muhammadu Buhari to claim ownership of the money.

According to the NIA, which is Nigeria’s foreign intelligence service, the money was said to have been approved by former President Goodluck Jonathan for covert operations and security projects covering a period of years.

The money was said to have been released in bits during the tenure of a former NIA director-general.

According to reports from NIA on the day the EFCC men gathered around the house, the NIA reached out to Magu to explain to him that the money was the property of the Federal Government and the place was an NIA safe house. Unfortunately, the EFCC still went ahead to break down the doors.”

However, governor Wike, described the claim that the cash belonged to the NIA as balderdash, alleged that the immediate past governor of the state and the current Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, kept the money in the apartment.

As such, the Rivers State governor gave the Federal Government a seven-day ultimatum to return the money to the state government or be ready to face legal action.