The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested Bashir Bello Ibrahim, a former Kaduna State government contractor and Chief Executive Officer of Formal Act Legacy Limited, over alleged fraudulent activities amounting to N30 billion.
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The EFCC’s Kaduna Zonal Directorate disclosed that despite the termination of his contract with the Kaduna State government, Ibrahim continued to pose as a consultant to the 23 local government areas in the state. He also allegedly misrepresented himself as a consultant to the United Charity Foundation (UCF), FICCORD, and claimed affiliation with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Office.
The Commission revealed that Ibrahim convinced his victims that he had a valid Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Kaduna State government since 2020, which supposedly allowed him to source funds from international donors for local government projects. However, investigations showed that the MoU was terminated in October 2023 due to his failure to meet the agreement’s terms.
Despite this, the suspect allegedly continued to award fake contracts for various development projects, including the supply of hospital equipment, boreholes, drugs, and vaccines. He reportedly received goods worth billions of naira, warehoused them, and failed to notify or compensate the local governments or the contractors involved. Some of the items were said to have been sold for personal gain.
The EFCC also accused him of selling contract papers through proxies and altering the terms of the contracts unilaterally, further prompting the state government to end the MoU.
During the arrest, several items were recovered from Ibrahim, including Toyota Hilux vans, ambulances, buses, dispatch motorcycles, hospital beds and mattresses, generators, and a large quantity of medical supplies such as drugs, vaccines, syringes, and other consumables.
Authorities have since begun collaborating with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Kaduna State Ministry of Health to assess the medical supplies found in his possession.
Umar Ahmad Suleiman, an officer with NAFDAC’s Federal Task Force, confirmed that while some of the drugs were from registered manufacturers and within shelf life, others were expired or counterfeit. Abubakar Isa Balarabe, a pharmacist from the Kaduna State Ministry of Health, also noted that the storage facility where the medicines were kept was unsuitable, describing its condition as substandard.
The EFCC stated that Ibrahim would be prosecuted upon the conclusion of ongoing investigations.
