Adamu Aliyu has been declared wanted over alleged N73.6m TETFund Contract Fraud.
NewsOnline Nigeria reports that a Federal High Court in Abuja has declared Plateau State House of Assembly member, Adamu Aliyu, wanted over an alleged fraudulent contract involving N73.6 million under the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
Justice Emeka Nwite issued the order on Friday following an application by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
According to court documents, businessman Mohammed Jidda petitioned the ICPC, alleging that Aliyu, who represents Jos North Constituency, promised to secure an N850 million TETFund contract at the University of Jos. Jidda claimed he signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the lawmaker and paid him N73.6 million upfront.
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The petition further alleged that part of the funds, N52 million was routed through Imanal Concept Ltd, owned by Saad Abubakar, who allegedly facilitated the fake contract.
Aliyu was accused of handing Jidda a forged award letter for a N500 million indoor sports hall project, directing him to deposit funds into his personal GTBank account as well as Imanal Concept’s Zenith Bank account.
Investigations revealed that N47.8 million went into Aliyu’s account, N22.4 million into Imanal Concept’s account, and another N3.2 million directly to Aliyu.
The University of Jos reportedly denied issuing such a contract and later confirmed in writing that the award letter was forged.
The ICPC told the court that despite repeated summons, Aliyu ignored its invitations even though he acknowledged receipt of messages via the Clerk of the Plateau Assembly and WhatsApp. The Commission also claimed to have credible intelligence that the lawmaker was planning to flee the country.
Justice Nwite granted ICPC’s request to declare Aliyu wanted, authorizing publication of his name in national newspapers and on social media. The order also empowers security agencies and private citizens to arrest him and hand him over to the Commission to face a 32-count charge bordering on fraud, forgery, and diversion of funds.
Aliyu, however, denied wrongdoing when contacted. He insisted he never defrauded Jidda, stating that he had refunded N45 million from his account to Jidda’s company, Mohiba Investment Ltd. He described the matter as a civil dispute over consultancy services rather than a criminal case.
The lawmaker also denied forging the contract award letter, saying he only delivered the document. He added that his lawyers had notified the ICPC that the case was already before a civil court.
