Twelve days before the inauguration of a new government in Edo State, the Accountant General, Julius Anelu, along with three other individuals, has reportedly been arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on allegations of misappropriating a N5 billion agricultural loan.
They were arrested on Thursday and as of Friday evening, they remain in the custody of the EFCC in Benin.
There are indications that they may be transferred to Abuja on Saturday for further investigation.
The arrested government officials were said to have been invited for a briefing and were subsequently detained.
The recent arrests have led to a significant halt in government activities, as disclosed by a source.
The state government is currently unable to access any government funds due to the fact that the signatories to various government accounts have been impacted by these arrests.
The implications of this development could be far-reaching, particularly as the state prepares for a transition to a new administration.
“They were arrested for a five billion naira agric loan, they were arrested on Thursday and as at now, Friday night , they are still with the EFCC and we learn that they may be moved to Abuja on Saturday” a government house source said.
When contacted for confirmation, EFCC spokesman in Edo State, Williams Oseghale, simply directed our reporter to the Commission’s spokesman, Dele Oyewale in Abuja and when contacted on phone, Oyewale replied through a Short Messaging Service (SMS), asking to be sent a text message but he was yet to respond to the message as at the time of filing this report.