Two aides of the governor of Ekiti state, Ayo Fayose, and another man were arraigned at the magistrates’ court by Ekiti state police for allegedly stealing from the Government House.
The alleged thieves are Temitope Bamidele, Sunday Afolabi and Shuaibu Amidu. Bamidele and Afolabi are domestic aides of Governor Ayo Fayose.
The men were arraigned for the alleged theft of $50,000 purportedly belonging to Fayose’s personal assistant Sunday Omosilade.
In a two-count charge of stealing and conspiracy, the police said that on December 29, Bamidele and Afolabi conspired to steal $50,000 in the Government House “belonging to Omosilade”.
The police prosecutor, Sergeant Caleb Leranmo, told the court that the accused committed the offence on December 29, 2016, at the Ekiti state Government House Lodge in Ado-Ekiti.
Leranmo alleged that the defendants conspired to commit felony by stealing: “Thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 516 of the Criminal Code, Cap C16, Law of Ekiti state, 2012.”
The prosecutor accused the trio of stealing $50,000 belonging to Omosilade.
The prosecutor also alleged that among the accused, Amidu, on December 30, 2016, at the Mugbagba area of Ado Ekiti, became an accessory to one Sunday when he changed $20,000 to naira denomination for him.
The Chief Magistrate, Adesoji Adegboye, ordered the trio to be remanded in prison custody till their bail application will be heard. He adjourned the case till January 16, 2017.
According to a report by The Nation, unconfirmed reports said a woman suspected to have links with a senior Government House official allegedly stole N75 million from the Government House.
The allegation has been denied by the governor’s Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka.
Olayinka accused All Progressives Congress (APC) members of fabricating the story to discredit the governor.
An anonymous source allegedly said: “Despite denials by government officials that the mistress did not steal N75 million, we can tell you that some domestic staff in the Government House, including a steward, cook and gardener, are in police custody.
“The governor’s personal assistant on Domestic Matters, Sunday Omosilade, was demoted over the matter.
“The Afao-born PA narrowly escaped being sacked. He was redeployed to the office of the wife of the governor as a lesser officer.
“With this, more facts have emerged about the stolen N75 million. The money was actually in British Pound Sterling.
“The total amount was £1,100,000. Of this amount, £150,000 equivalent of N90 million was stolen by the woman together with a steward, cook and gardener.
“Of this amount, the woman made away with £125,000 equivalent of N75 million, leaving the balance of £25,000 for the steward, gardener and others to share.
“It was part of this £25,000 that was later found, hidden in a flower bed in the garden of the chalet where she stayed.
“It was the steward who was caught at a bureau de change where he was trying to change his own share to naira.
“When he was nabbed, the steward took security operatives to where the balance was kept.
“He also mentioned all those involved in the deal who are in police custody.
“The young lady in question has reportedly relocated.
“The senior Government House official ordered her house and those of her parents to be vandalised by thugs.
“The poor parents said they don’t know the whereabouts of their daughter and that the last they heard about her through her friends was that she had relocated outside the country.”
Meanwhile, some civil society organizations have called on the federal government to arrest the Ekiti state governor Ayodele Fayose for his alleged role in the arms deal scandal.
The CSOs – a coalition of five anti-corruption organizations under the aegis of Corruption and Democracy Watchers in Nigeria – said the governor must first be impeached and then arrested.