close
Tuesday, June 27, 2023

$76 Million Cash Haul: Aisha Odariko was perm sec Kyari Dikwa’s account officer; she’s under probe, NDIC says

The background of his relationship with Mrs Odariko was unclear, although officials said they were both romantically involved.

• June 26, 2023
Aisha Odariko and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation
Aisha Odariko and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has confirmed that one of its staff, Aisha Odariko, who was linked to a fraudulent case of stockpiling about $76 million cash of unexplained origin in a duplex in Abuja, was an account officer to Mohammed Kyari Dikwa, a retired permanent secretary at the Federal Ministry of Finance.

Peoples Gazette had in an exclusive report, revealed how Mrs Odariko, 43, from Okene LGA in Kogi, had been a subject of a sprawling criminal investigation by federal authorities of how $4 million cash was hauled away by sharp metal collectors at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a statement on Monday, the NDIC revealed that the fraud allegedly committed by Mrs Odariko has nothing to do with the federal government’s corporation.

It, however, assured that it would probe the allegation, stressing that the federal government organisation has “zero tolerance” for financial impropriety or any other action that might contravene its core values, corporate culture, and code of conduct.

“Meanwhile, our preliminary investigations into the allegations have revealed that the staff in question, while being an employee of one of the commercial banks prior to joining the NDIC in 2017, was the account officer of the former Federal Government Official referenced in the report.

“She has claimed that she was not privy to any improper financial transaction with anybody while working in the commercial bank. Nevertheless, if we come across any contrary information, we shall not hesitate to take appropriate action regarding the staff involved,” NDIC said in the statement signed by Bashir Nuhu, a spokesperson for the corporation.

The Gazette had further reported that Messrs Odariko and Kyari Dikwa conspired to run an expansive fraud ring as federal officials, especially as the whereabouts of the remaining $72 million that Mrs Odariko allegedly told a federal agent was left after the burglars stole $4 million from the $76 million stash remained questioned.

Although, Mr Kyari Dikwa, from Borno, once acted as accountant-general of the federation under President Muhammadu Buhari and retired from the civil service just before some of the hidden cash was looted.

The background of his relationship with Mrs Odariko was unclear, although officials said they were both romantically involved.

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Bola Tinubu and Kashim Shettima

NationWide

Tinubu will fast-track single-digit loans for MSMEs: Shettima

Vice-President Kashim Shettima says the federal government will ensure quick access to single-digit loans for Nigerian small businesses.

Civil Defence officers

Jos

Eid-el-Kabir: 2,042 NSCDC operatives stationed across Plateau

NSCDC has deployed 2,042 personnel towards a hitch-free Eid-el-Kabir celebration in Plateau.

Mosquitoes

Health

U.S. issues nationwide alert as five residents get malaria from mosquito bites in Florida, Texas

The U.S. issued a nationwide health alert for the first time in 20 years over the spread of malaria caused by mosquitoes in Texas and Florida.

ABDULRASHEED BAWA,Mrs. Farida Waziri,Ibrahim Lamorde,IBRAHIM MAGU, MOHAMMED UMAR ABBA and ABDULKARIM CHUKKOL

Anti-Corruption

Tinubu should appoint southerner, not northerner, as EFCC chair: HURIWA

“It is essential to rectify the existing regional imbalance within the EFCC by appointing a candidate from the South as the next chairman.”

RAMS

Faith

Don’t borrow to buy sallah rams, chief imam tells Muslims

“Borrowing to fulfil this obligation is a way of imposing an unnecessary financial burden on oneself. Sallah is not an opportunity to show off affluence or materialism.”

MUSLIMS ON ARAFAT

Faith

2023 Hajj: Two million Nigerian Muslims, others converge on Arafat

Two million pilgrims from around the world, including Nigeria, who arrived in Saudi Arabia for this year’s hajj, have converged on the plains of Arafat.