The Police in Ekiti State have arrested two men, Benedict Ola Idega and Abdulsalami Leader, for an alleged attempt to defraud the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose.
The men, who allegedly paraded themselves as staff of the Office of the National Security Adviser, had claimed they could influence the report of the military panel set up to investigate the role of the military in the June 21, 2014 Ekiti governorship election.
According to the Special Assistant to the Governor on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, the two men at a meeting with Fayose in his Afao Ekiti residence presented what they called a photocopy of the page three of the preliminary report to show that they meant business.
“They also said the army panel report was targeted at some top army officers that the Federal Government wanted to punish. The purported copy of the page three bore the logo of the Nigerian Army.”
Olayinka said the governor, who was suspicious of the men’s real intentions, had informed the state Commissioner of Police and Director of the Department of State Services.
“After turning in the copy of the page three of the purported preliminary report, the governor gave the impression that he was satisfied with all that they said and asked them to wait at his waiting room for him to show appreciation. He then called in the Commissioner of Police and DSS Director, who in turn asked their men to move in and arrest the two men.
“The identity card found on Abdulsalami H Leader bore “GMB SECURITY” and it was stated at the back that he (Abdulsalami) is the security of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari with Number 34, Lobitto Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja as issuer’s address and 088133636478 and 08057010255 as telephone numbers. Benedict Ola Idega was with an identity card bearing Federal Capital Development Authority,” he added.
The two men, who lodged at a popular hotel along Bank Road, Ado Ekiti are now being detained at the Police Headquarters, Ado Ekiti alongside another suspected accomplice, who was found in their hotel room when policemen visited the hotel for a search.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Alberto Adeyemi, confirmed the arrest of the two men for fraud. (Punch; Photo credit: Vanguard)