Nigeria arrests former minister in hiding after corruption conviction

The former power minister was sentenced to 75 years in jail in absentia earlier this month.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, in Rigasa, Kaduna State, following his conviction for fraud related to the Mambilla Power Project. Mamman had been on trial for financial misconduct involving the multi-billion-naira hydropower project and was sentenced to 75 years in prison after failing to appear in court. He is currently in custody awaiting transfer to a correctional facility.

Details have emerged on how the EFCC tracked and arrested former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, after he was sentenced to 75 years imprisonment in absentia. Sources revealed that Mamman was located through his phone in an apartment in the Rigasa area of Kaduna State. Two individuals alleged to have harbored him were also arrested. The EFCC had been searching for Mamman following his conviction on charges of fraud and financial misconduct involving the Mambilla hydropower project.

Nigeria's anti-graft agency, the EFCC, arrested former power minister Saleh Mamman in Kaduna, days after a court sentenced him in absentia to 75 years in prison for laundering 33.8 billion naira. Mamman had been on the run since his May 7 conviction and is now in custody. The arrest marks a rare follow-through in Nigeria's fight against high-level corruption, where convictions of senior officials are uncommon and enforcement is often slow.

The EFCC announced the arrest of former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, months after he allegedly disappeared while standing trial over the diversion of N33 billion meant for critical electricity projects. Mamman was arrested at about 3:30 a.m. in Kaduna following an intensive intelligence and surveillance operation launched after his conviction on corruption charges linked to the Mambilla and Makurdi power projects.

The EFCC arrested former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, days after he was convicted and sentenced to 75 years imprisonment over the diversion of funds linked to the Mambilla and Zungeru hydropower projects. Mamman was arrested at 3:30 a.m. in Kaduna State alongside two persons allegedly shielding him from arrest. The property where he was hiding is also under investigation.