Fresh details have emerged on the suspension of the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Abduyari Lafia, the AIG in charge of the Force Criminal Investigations Department (FCID), whose suspension was announced on January 17, with effect from January 9, 2025.
The Police Service Commission (PSC), which approved Abduyari’s suspension in a letter dated January 9, 2025, had communicated the police authorities via a letter referenced AP:41804/FS/FHQ/ABJ/VOL.IV/3 asked him to proceed on suspension with effect from January 9.
Investigations by the Sunday Tribune, however, confirmed that the development was connected to a long and unwinding web of investigations, petitions and court cases involving the AIG, FCID and some officers as well as a Lagos-based layer and a firm that built a Mammy Market for the Nigerian Army in Ikeja, Lagos.
It was gathered that a case of forgery and theft of the sum of N36 billion was originally referred to AIG Abduyari and his team at the FCID. Upon intervention, his team was able to recover the sum of N1 billion with a promise by the culprits to refund N18 billion within a short time.
Investigations, however, revealed that a twist crept into the case when a lawyer, Mr Victor Ukut, in petition dated April 30, 2024 sent to the Inspector General of Police and Minister of Police Affairs, accused AIG Abduyari of abuse of office and other such offences.
The three-leg petition entitled: “Petition of robbery Against AIG Abduyari Shuaya’u Lafia and other police officers at Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB) and stealing the sum of six hundred and ninety-two million, one hundred and twenty-two thousand Naira from Woobs Resources Limited’s bank accounts with Fidelity Bank PLC.
