The EFCC has released the former NAHCON chairman and secretary on bail following their arrest in a N90bn fraud case. Find out more about the developments.
Jalal Arabi, who was recently ousted as the chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), and Abdullahi Kontagora, NAHCON’s secretary, have been granted bail by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
They were apprehended on charges related to the illicit withdrawal and mishandling of the 2024 Hajj intervention fund valued at N90 billion.
Following their inability to meet the initial bail conditions, Arabi and Kontagora were detained in EFCC custody for five days. Nevertheless, a reliable source confirmed that they fulfilled the necessary criteria on Monday and consequently secured release from detention.
The inquiry is continuing, and there have been no further findings since the recovery of 314,098 Saudi Riyal. According to a source, “Both the former Hajj Commission chairman and secretary were released on Monday after fulfilling their bail terms. The investigation remains open with no updates available at this time regarding additional recoveries.”
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Attempts to contact the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, for additional statements were unfruitful as he did not answer phone calls or messages.
Arabi and his associates have been accused of deceitfully overpaying themselves from the N90 billion Hajj subsidy.
The EFCC investigation found that NAHCON couldn’t account for 8,614,175.27 Saudi Riyal withdrawn in cash transactions, while also discovering fake payments to employees for non-existent study tours as well as payment to Shuraka’a al-Khair Group Ltd who provided no services whatsoever.
Due to the probe, Arabi and others have already had 314,098 Saudi Riyal recovered from them.
In addition, it has been claimed that documents regarding payments for consultancy services were intentionally postdated in order to authorize a payment of SAR 780,019.59 to Shuraka’a al-Khair Group Ltd back in April of 2024. According to reports , Arabi admitted that no actual services were provided by the consultant involved.`,
After the ongoing inquiry, President Bola Tinubu removed Arabi on August 19 and named Professor Abdullahi Usman as NAHCON’s new chairman. The EFCC is still probing allegations of financial misconduct within the commission.
