EFCC Investigates Diversion of Company Funds in NAHCO

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) last week arrested the Chairman of Nigeria Aviation Handling Company Plc, Suleiman Yahaya, for allegedly diverting huge amount of money from the company for personal use, THISDAY investigations have learnt.

Yahaya was arrested by EFCC operatives last Friday in Abuja as he allegedly wanted to travel to South Africa, ostensibly to escape from the long arms of the law, and was whisked to Lagos and detained at the Ikoyi, Lagos office of the commission.

THISDAY learnt that EFCC sought remand order from the court last Monday to detain Yahaya for 14 days under which it would complete investigation on the chairman and directors who served under him to unravel the alleged fraud.

A source also disclosed that last week Thursday, EFCC invited former Chairman of the Company, Major General Ike Nwachukwu (rtd) for questioning and was later released.

It was alleged that Yahaya diverted funds of the company, including the money the company obtained from the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), and padded them into staff salaries until recently when petitions written to EFCC by disenchanted former officials of the company who felt they were unjustly sacked, drew the attention of the commission to the company.

Yahaha was accused of using his company called Rosehill Group to collect 5 percent monthly on all income generated by NAHCO from cargo handling services. The service Rosehill Group provides for the handling company was called Management Support but officials of NAHCO said the company did not have any personnel and rendered no visible service to NAHCO.

The agreement was signed in December 2010 between NAHCO and Rosehill Group under the prompting of Yahaha who allegedly convinced NAHCO board to sign the deal.

Yahaya was also accused of taking N5 billion bonds for NAHCO, which he allegedly used to buy handling equipment for the company and to kick start diversification programme.

It ventured into power and agriculture and bid for Kaduna Power Distribution Company (DISCO) and lost. Recently, the company hinted that it wanted to bid for the concession of airport facilities, which the federal government plans to undertake.

THISDAY also learnt that a day before the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of NAHCO was held last Wednesday in Abuja, the Managing Director, Nobert Bielderman, who might have got wind of the visit of EFCC, sneaked out of town and travelled overseas, while Yahaha, who was about to check into South Africa Airways flight to Johannesburg, was arrested by EFCC operatives.

Asource told THISDAY yesterday that what Yahaya allegedly did was a breach of corporate governance of the company and in line with the anti-corruption stance of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration; the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) have threatened to sanction indicted companies’ directors, including seizing their assets and prosecuting them with relevant security agencies to bring them to book when they defraud their companies.

The Manager, Corporate Communications and Services of the company, Tayo Ajakaye, who had earlier confirmed the visit of EFCC to NAHCO headquarters at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, and the arrest of the Chief Financial Officer, said he would not comment on the latest development but directed THISDAY to the Managing Director of the company, Bielderman, whom he said was airborne on his way back to Nigeria at the time of filing the story.