Connect with us

Metro

N350m fraud allegation: It’s blackmail, says Okiro

Published

on

Former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Mike Okiro has said that there was an attempt to blackmail him over an allegation that he defrauded the PSC of N350m.

According to him, the plot was conceived by a former protocol officer in the commission, Aaron Kaase, and a journalist he refused to name.

Addressing a press conference in Abuja on Monday, Okiro denied that there was any N350m fraud in the commission, adding, that the unnamed journalist had demanded a N10m bribe in order not to publish a petition against him (Okiro).

Last week, the ICPC had interrogated Okiro following a petition by Kaase, in which he accused the PSC chairman of organising a fraudulent training programme for workers of the commission to siphon N350m.

Okiro on Monday said, “On April 2, 2015 at 2.20pm, I received a text on my phone, which read, “Afternoon sir, can you kindly call me? I am working on a story over alleged N350m loot in your commission.” It was from a journalist (name withheld).

“When I called him, he stated that there was a petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the ICPC alleging that I defrauded the commission of N350m and that the petition was sent to six newspapers to publish. He concluded that he needed to see me urgently; I told him I was not in Abuja and would see him when I return.

“When I came back, he came to my residence and claimed that he had spoken with the editors of the newspapers who had agreed not to publish the story on the grounds that I give them N10m to share. He said that Gen. (Muhammadu) Buhari is coming to fight corruption, once the papers publish any such story against you, he would remove you immediately.”

Okiro explained that he declined to pay the money, noting that on April 8, the journalist sent his bank account details by text message to pay the money “in case I change my mind to avoid shame and embarrassment.”

He said the journalist, after sending his bank account number, kept pestering him and calling his phone ceaselessly until he told the alleged blackmailer that he would not succumb to his blackmail and threatened to report him to the Nigeria Guild of Editors.

The retired IG said that Kaase was later arrested and remanded in Kuje prison for collecting N1m from a man to secure a United States visa when he was the protocol officer. He said Kaase failed to procure the visa probably due to his redeployment to another department in the commission.

Okiro alleged that Kaase had misplaced grudges against him over his redeployment from the protocol unit, where he said the man was executing some shady deals and for his (Okiro’s) refusal to give him money for his wedding.

Ripples… without borders, without fears

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now