Sh*ck Twist: Lawmaker Declared Wanted For Fraud Surrenders

A serving member of the Plateau State House of Assembly, Adamu Aliyu, is currently being questioned by operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over allegations of contract fraud.

According to Ireporter Online, the lawmaker, who represents Jos North-North Constituency, surrendered himself at the ICPC headquarters in Abuja on Monday, days after Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court declared him wanted at the request of the anti-graft agency.

The order was issued after investigators informed the court that Aliyu had repeatedly ignored invitations to respond to questions surrounding the case. Court filings revealed that the investigation followed a petition by businessman Mohammed Jidda, who accused the legislator of defrauding him under the guise of facilitating a Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) contract worth ₦850 million at the University of Jos.

Jidda alleged that Aliyu signed a Memorandum of Understanding with him, stipulating a payment of ₦73.6 million should the contract be awarded. This included a facilitation fee of ₦52 million to a firm, Imanal Concept Ltd. Investigators later claimed Aliyu presented Jidda with a forged contract award letter, purportedly from the University of Jos, for the construction of an indoor sports hall valued at ₦500 million.

Based on the letter, Jidda reportedly transferred the agreed funds into two accounts provided by Aliyu—his personal Guaranty Trust Bank account and that of Imanal Concept Ltd at Zenith Bank. However, when Jidda approached the University of Jos for documentation, the institution denied awarding such a contract and later confirmed in writing to the ICPC that the letter was forged.

Bank records obtained by investigators indicated that ₦47.8 million was deposited into Aliyu’s personal account, ₦22.4 million into Imanal Concept Ltd’s account, and ₦3.2 million directly to the lawmaker. Despite several invitations, including notices sent through the Clerk of the Plateau Assembly and messages via his WhatsApp line, Aliyu allegedly failed to appear before investigators until he was declared wanted. The ICPC also told the court it had intelligence suggesting he planned to flee the country.

When confronted with the allegations, Aliyu denied wrongdoing, claiming he was unaware of the ICPC summons while on pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. He further insisted that he refunded ₦45 million to Jidda’s company, Mohiba Investment Ltd, providing receipts of four separate transfers. The lawmaker denied forging the contract documents, attributing them instead to an associate, whom he described as the actual facilitator.

As at the time of this report, Aliyu remained in ICPC custody in Abuja for further interrogation.