El-Rufai Remains in Custody as ICPC Raids Abuja Home

Nasir El-Rufai remains in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) following a search of his Abuja residence on Thursday.

Olumuyiwa Adekeye, spokesperson to the former Kaduna governor, disclosed the development in a brief statement posted on X. He said officials of the commission searched El-Rufai’s Aso Drive home earlier in the day.

Adekeye added that El-Rufai’s lawyer, Ubong Akpan, described the search as unlawful and alleged it breached established legal procedures and fundamental rights.

The search comes hours after reports that ICPC operatives took El-Rufai into custody on Wednesday night. He was arrested shortly after his release from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) headquarters in Abuja.

According to reports, ICPC officials intercepted him outside the EFCC premises at about 10:00 p.m. and transported him to the commission’s headquarters.

El-Rufai had spent two nights in EFCC custody after appearing for questioning on Monday. He is under investigation over allegations of N432 billion in money laundering, following a petition submitted by the Kaduna State House of Assembly.

The ICPC has not issued a detailed statement on the arrest or the search as of press time.