The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested Paul Hembah, the Special Adviser on Security Matters to Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State, over alleged N42million fraud.
The anti-graft agency said that Hembah was quizzed for over 6 hours on Wednesday and has volunteered useful information to its investigators. It noted that the suspect would be arraigned in court as soon as investigation is concluded.
According to the EFCC, its operatives in Makurdi Zonal office have commenced investigations into allegations of misappropriation of the money which was meant for disbursement to Benue State Vigilante Group, BSVG.
The commission said in a statement on Thursday that Hembah, a retired Lieutenant Colonel, allegedly abused his office on July 12, 2019, when he transferred a sum of N42million from official account of the office of the Special Adviser on Security Matters (his office) to his personal bank account and withdrew same in cash same day.
The EFCC said that the governor’s aide allegedly between October 2018 and May 2020 also abused his office by fraudulently paying the N20million monthly allocation meant for BSVG into the personal account of the Commandant of the Group, George Mbessey instead of using the official account of the group.
It added that the alleged offence if established violates the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011.
It would be recalled that operatives of the EFCC on May 27, 2020 arrested Mbessey in connection with alleged mismanagement of the N449.5million meant for the Benue State Vigilante Group, BSVG.
