Fraud: 12 properties of Jonathan’s ex-minister Mohammed seized by EFCC
- The EFCC says it is set to charge Bala Mohammed and his son Shamsudeen Bala to court in Abuja soon
- The anti-corruption agency says it has evidence that the former minister also diverted funds from government revenues into personal account and also gave out landed properties to his allies
EFCC sources have confirmed the seizure of 12 properties from former president Goodluck Jonathan’s ex-minister Bala Mohammed and his son
Twelve properties belonging to ex-minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Bala Mohammed have been seized by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Punch reports that the 12 properties also included those taken from Mohammed’s son Shamsudeen Bala.
It quoted an EFCC source as confirming the seizures, saying they were part of the on-going investigation into the land scam that occurred in Abuja during Mohammed’s tenure as minister.
The EFCC is waiting to wrap up its investigations before charging Mohammed and Shamsudeen to court in Abuja.
Bala Mohammed is also accused of diverting government funds into personal accounts while also giving out landed properties to his close allies.
The source said:
So far, we have seized about 12 properties from Bala Mohammed and his son, who he used in buying many properties. However, this is just a tip of the iceberg because we found out that there are still a lot of properties to be recovered.
We have evidence that the ex-minister diverted funds from Internally Generated Revenue. He also gave land arbitrarily to friends without following due process. Some of the land had even been allocated to other people but seized from them unjustly.”
After investigations, we will arraign Bala (ex-minister) before an FCT High Court while his son will be arraigned before a Federal High Court anytime from now.
Recall that Bala Mohammed just recently regained his freedom after was detained by the EFCC on Monday, October 24 after reporting at the Abuja headquarters of the anti-corruption body.
