$3 million bribe: Farouk Lawan Arrested, May Spend Lengthy Time In Detention
The Chairman, House of Representatives’ adhoc committee which investigated the fuel subsidy fraud, Farouk Lawan has been arrested by the Nigerian Police. Lawan who slept in the police custody Thursday night will remain in detention for days, Police sources said. This is because he could not produce relevant documents he had earlier told the Press would exonerate him from the bribery scandal. The Nigerian Police is expected to apply for a remand order from a High Court Judge to legalise a lengthy detention should he remain un-cooperative with investigations into the bribe of $3million he allegedly received from Femi Otedola to cover up Zenon Oil Company and one other coy owned by Otedola in the 1.2 trillion Naira fuel subsidy theft scandal which the House of Representatives was investigating.
Lawan alongside the House of Representatives Committee’s secretary was reported to have gone to 0tedola’s house at an unholy hour to receive 600,000 dollars, part payment of the three million dollar bribe demanded as shown by the video evidence submitted to the police by Otedola. As a result of the bribe received by Lawan on April 23, he removed Otedola’s company, Zenon Oil from offenders’ list on April 24. Zenon oil which was found to be guilty of subsidy theft by Lawan’s committee as late as April 18 was exonerated by Lawan.
Lawan who has been changing his story episodically and acting evasively to the Public and the Police eventually admitted to taking the bribe but said he did it to nail the bribe giver even though he did not report to the Police or any other law enforcement agent before receiving the bribe, unlike Otedola who is alleged to have reported the matter to the security agents. The money given to Lawan by Otedola was reported to have been provided by the police.
