EFCC Arrests Former Minister for Alleged N3.6bn Fraud

Former Minister of Commerce and Industry, Charles Chukwuemeka Ugwuh, has been apprehended by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) alongside Chief Geoffrey Ekenma. The arrest, made by the operatives of the Lagos Zonal Command on January 11, 2024, at No.2, Musa Yar Adua way, New Owerri, Imo State, is in connection with an alleged conspiracy and fraud amounting to N3.6bn.

The arrest comes on the heels of a petition submitted to the EFCC by a new generation bank, implicating Ugwuh and Ekenma in fraudulent activities linked to a company named Ebony Agro Industries Ltd., associated with the ex-Minister. Dele Oyewale, the spokesperson for the anti-graft agency, revealed in a statement on Monday that investigations unveiled a loan facility obtained by Ugwuh and Ekenma for the purchase and production of polished rice through the said company.

The petitioner disclosed that despite obtaining the loan, Ugwuh failed to meet his obligations to the bank, and attempts to secure repayment proved futile. The EFCC stated that the suspects would face charges in court once the investigations are completed.

Charles Ugwuh, a former president of the Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria (MAN), previously contested in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primaries for Imo State governor in the April 2007 elections. Although he lost the primary, he was appointed Minister for Commerce & Industry in 2007 by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua, holding the position until the cabinet’s dissolution on 29th October 2008.