EFCC set to arraign Zamfara Senator-elect over fraud allegations any moment – Sources

There’s no respite for the former governor of Zamfara State and Senator-elect, Abdul’aziz Yari yet as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC may pick him up for arraignment in Court any moment, CAPITAL POST has learnt.

Yari allegedly defrauded Zamfara State government in billions of naira when he governed the State for two terms which he has previously been arrested by the anti-graft agency and bailed.

Sources handling the case, who pleaded to remain anonymous disclosed that the Commission is eager to kick-off the criminal case against Mr. Yari, saying, “This (Yari’s theft) is one of the most brazen cases of public purse robbery that has ever happened in Nigeria’s history.”

The sources said, the former governor who won a Senatorial seat to the 10th Senate on the All Progressives Congress in Zamfara State, has been under investigation for the last six years for allegedly diverting billions of naira from the Paris Club refunds and plunging his state into indebtedness through reckless spending and wanton misappropriation of funds.

Based on the investigation, CAPITAL POST was told that time was ripe for him to be arraigned in Court, particularly that in the course of investigations, he was made to forfeit some of the illicit fund to the Federal Government.

CAPITAL POST recalled that the anti-graft agency in May, 2022, arrested Yari as part of investigations into the N84 billion fraud involving the former Accountant-General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris.

The former Accountant-General has been fired from office due to his indictment in Yari’s criminal diversion of fund and the large scale fraud he perpetrated at the Treasury House.

He and the Chairman of a firm, Anthony Yaro, Finex Professional Services, were picked up for their alleged role in N84 billion fraud involving former Accountant-General of the Federation.

Sources say Mr. Yari allegedly benefited to the tune of N22 billion through Finex Professional, from the N84 billion which the former AGF paid one Akindele.

In February of 2021, the EFCC also interrogated Yari over alleged N300 billion suspected slush cash.

The cash was suspected to have been laundered through a company’s account in a new generation bank. It was gathered that the governor was alleged to have attempted to move the cash in the account.