By Seyi Odewale
Convicted former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, is now in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after operatives tracked and arrested him in a dramatic pre-dawn operation in Kano.
The arrest came days after he was sentenced in absentia to 75 years’ imprisonment over a ₦33.8 billion fraud linked to the Mambilla and Zungeru hydroelectric power projects.
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, disclosed on Tuesday that the former minister was apprehended at about 3:30 a.m., following weeks of intelligence surveillance and a coordinated search across several locations.
“Ladies and gentlemen, you will recall that sometime in January 2025, we filed charges against the ex-minister of power for allegedly converting over ₦33 billion meant for the Mambilla and Zungeru power projects,” Olukoyede said during a press briefing in Abuja.
He explained that after more than a year of prosecution, the anti-graft agency secured convictions on all 12 counts filed against Mamman before the Federal High Court.
“About 14 to 15 months down the line, specifically on the 7th of this month, we secured convictions on all 12 counts. Because the defendant was not present, sentencing was postponed. And on the 13th of this month, he was sentenced in absentia,” the EFCC boss stated.
Olukoyede said the former minister allegedly went underground immediately after the judgment, forcing the commission to widen its intelligence dragnet and place him under active surveillance.
“Since then, we decided to open our intelligence surveillance to the public, looking for him all over the place. I am happy to announce to Nigerians that at about 3:30 a.m. this morning, we arrested Mr Saleh Mamman somewhere in Kano,” he declared.
Sources within the commission said EFCC operatives stormed the hideout in a swift operation and handcuffed the former minister alongside two associates accused of shielding him from arrest after his conviction.
“We have discovered that he was actually being protected all this while,” Olukoyede said.
He added that the anti-corruption agency had commenced investigations into the property where Mamman was allegedly concealed.
The EFCC chairman described the arrest as a breakthrough in the Federal Government’s anti-corruption war and a strong warning to public officials accused of looting public funds.
“It is to assure Nigerians that anyone who has taken government or national resources will not go unpunished, and the eagle eye of the EFCC will always catch up with you wherever you are hiding,” he added.
Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had on May 13 sentenced Mamman in absentia after convicting him on all 12 counts bordering on money laundering and diversion of public funds amounting to ₦33.8 billion.
The court held that the funds were tied to the controversial Mambilla and Zungeru hydroelectric power projects, two flagship electricity projects expected to boost Nigeria’s struggling power sector.
In his ruling, Justice Omotosho said the ex-minister’s repeated absence from court amounted to “a deliberate attempt to frustrate the administration of justice.”
The judge slammed Mamman with seven years’ imprisonment on 10 counts, without the option of a fine; three years’ imprisonment on one count, with an option of a ₦10 million fine; and two years’ imprisonment on another count, without the option of a fine, bringing the cumulative sentence to 75 years.
The court had earlier directed all security agencies, including Interpol, to collaborate with the EFCC to track and arrest the former minister wherever he was found.
