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EFCC has arraigned a former Kaduna State government contractor, Mr. Bashir Bello Ibrahim
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EFCC says he swindled victims through bogus borehole projects in the North-East.
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Court remands suspect as judge declines bail application.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a former Kaduna State government contractor, Mr. Bashir Bello Ibrahim, over allegations of ₦111 million fraud involving fake borehole contracts.
Ibrahim, who serves as Chief Executive Officer of Formal Act Legacy Limited, was arraigned before Justice A. M. Aikawa of the Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna on a seven-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretence, advance fee fraud, and money laundering.
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According to the EFCC, the defendant allegedly conspired with others in July 2024 to collect ₦37.3 million from unsuspecting victims under the pretext of securing contracts for the construction of solar-powered boreholes across the North-East. The fraudulent deals were purportedly facilitated through his alleged role as a “United Nations Sub-African Regional Coordinator.”
When the charges were read to him, Ibrahim pleaded not guilty. The prosecuting counsel, Fortune Amina Asemebo, subsequently requested a date for trial, while the defence counsel, M. T. Mohammed, moved a bail application.
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Justice Aikawa, however, declined to entertain the bail request and ordered that the defendant be remanded in a correctional centre pending determination of the application.
The EFCC explained that investigations began after receiving a petition from a complainant who accused Ibrahim and three others — Josephine Washima, Mamuda Nyelong, and Nalara Tanimu — of collecting ₦37.3 million as facilitation fees for non-existent contracts.
The petitioner reportedly executed a portion of the purported deal in Karin Madaki, Bauchi State, where four solar-powered boreholes were drilled, but was never paid or recognised by any legitimate awarding body.
Further investigations revealed that the contract did not exist and was merely a scheme designed to defraud unsuspecting investors.
