ICPC Drags Suspended SEC DG, Gwarzo to Court over N115.8m Fraud

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has arraigned the suspended Director-General of the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr. Mounir Haliru Gwarzo, over an allegation of misappropriating N115.8 million;

Mr. Gwarzo and a Commissioner in SEC, Mr. Zakawanu Garuba, are both facing a five-count charge before Justice Hassan Yusuf Baba of Court 4 High Court of the Federal Capital Territory Abuja.

Gwarzo was accused of paying himself N115, 834, 643.82 as severance package and car allowance in 2015, while still in the service of SEC, while Garuba is facing allegations of approving N10.9 million for the car allowance.

ICPC’s counsel, Henry O. Emore, informed the court that their actions were contrary to the provisions of Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.

Part of the charge reads:’’ That you Dr Mounir Haliru Gwarzo (m) sometime in June, 2015 or thereabout at Abuja Federal Capital Territory, while being a Public officer used your position as Director-General of the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) to confer corrupt advantage upon yourself when you received the sum of N104,851,154.94 (One Hundred and Four Million, Eight Hundred and Fifty One Thousand, One Hundred and Fifty Four Naira, Ninety Four Kobo) as severance benefit whereas yow were yet to retire, resign or disengage from the service of SEC and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act,2000”.

The accused pleaded not guilty to all the charges when they were read to them. 

Counsel to the accused, A.U Mustapha and A.A Malik, pleaded for bail from the court since their client had kept to the conditions of the administrative bail which ICPC had given them.

Justice Baba, in his ruling, granted the accused bail in the sum of N25 

million each, with a surety who is not below the rank of a Deputy Director in the Federal Public Service, resident in and has landed property in the FCT.

He also ordered that the documents of the properties of the sureties and the international passports of the accused persons should be submitted to the court.

The case was then adjourned to 28^th and 29^th June 2018 for hearing.