Alleged N75m bribe: Magu denies EFCC operatives tried to extort businessman
- Ibrahim Magu has shrugged off a fresh allegation against him
- Speaking through his lawyer Wahab Shittu, the embattled EFCC boss denied trying to extort a businessman of N75 million
- Magu is facing the storm following allegations of corruption levelled against him which are being investigated by a special panel
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Wahab Shittu, lawyer of Ibrahim Magu, has denied the fresh allegation against the embattled chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Speaking on Wednesday, August 19, Shittu said the allegation that EFCC operatives under Magu's supervision demanded N75 million bribe from a businessman Donald Wokoma is false, Premium Times reports.
Wokoma had reportedly presented an audiotape before the retired Justice Ayo Salami-led presidential panel on Tuesday, August 18, detailing how officers of the anti-graft agency tried to extort him after freezing his company’s bank account.
He further said EFCC officials handling the case of his company asked him in May 2020 to sign three blank cheques of N75 million at N25 million each out of the N250 million total sum in the company’s frozen account as a condition before unfreezing it.
Source: Twitter
But reacting to the allegation, Magu's lead counsel Shittu debunked the claim, saying the allegation against the EFCC boss and his boys was clearly fabricated.
"The N75 million allegedly linked to Mr Magu and his boys belonged to a third party lawyer, Fatima Hassan, who was employed by Mr Giwa to help retrieve Mr Wakoma’s frozen money.
"Mr Giwa is a counsel to Donald Wakoma whose account was blocked. Mr Giwa contacted Ms Hassan, another lawyer to help Mr Wokoma his client unblock the money that was frozen which she agreed. She agreed to get 30 per cent of the N250 million with is N75 million,” Shittu said.
He further added that two lawyers, Victor Giwa, and Fatima Hassan, appeared at the presidential panel.
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Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that an eminent law professor, Itse Sagay, has said that the charges against Magu are still "allegations in petition" and thus cannot be used against him.
Sagay, who is chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), made this known in a statement on Monday, August 10, while making his stand known on the investigation being carried out by retired justice Ayo Salami-led committee.
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Source: Legit.ng
