ICPC quizzes Okiro over alleged N275m scam

A former Inspector-General of Police and Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Mr. Mike Okiro, was on Thursday in Abuja quizzed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission over an alleged N275m fraud.The PUNCH learnt that the ex-IGP arrived the ICPC at 9:51am, accompanied by three other officers of the PSC and went straight into the investigation department of the commission.

When one of our correspondents contacted Okiro on the telephone, he did not respond to calls. He also did not reply a text message that was sent to his telephone.

In the SMS sent to him, he was asked to respond to the report that the ICPC quizzed him on Thursday over an alleged N275m fraud.

When he got to the ICPC, the former IGP was dressed in ash coloured Niger Delta attire with a cap to match.

He came in a convoy of a black Toyota Land Cruiser Jeep, with registration No: T98 01 FG (PSC) and black Toyota Camry, marked T98 12 FG (PSC). Okiro was accompanied by three PSC officers.

His interrogation was sequel to a petition by a member of staff of the PSC, Aaron Kaase, to the ICPC, claiming that Okiro allegedly siphoned N275m out of the N350m that was obtained by the commission from the Office of the National Security Adviser to train PSC staff.

PSC staff were scheduled to partake in the monitoring of the conduct of men and officers of the Nigeria Police in the last general elections.

In his petition, Kaase alleged that Okiro had made bogus claims to train highly inflated number of his commission’s staff in Lagos, Abuja and Kano.

According to him, the trainings were roughly carried out to a few staff in Mararaba, a satellite community of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

He also alleged that Okiro and others claimed some millions of naira for separate overseas trainings, which they never attended.

The petitioner had said that Okiro and others allegedly siphoned the said amount, claiming they would train 500 staff in Abuja; 200 in Lagos and another 200 in Kano, when the combined staff strength of the commission nationwide was not more than 400.

Kaase also stated that in Kano where 200 members of staff were said to be trained, the staff strength was merely 10.

Punch