The suspension of Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Abduyari Lafia despite being cleared by a team set up by the police to investigate allegations against him has raised concern as to the real motive behind his suspension.
AIG Lafia who headed the Force Criminal Investigations Department (FCID), was suspended on January 9, 2025 by the Police Service Commission.
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He is widely respected in the Police Force as a thoroughbred professional who insists on following rules in his investigations and is not amenable to influence from people in power.
AIG Lafia and his team were involved in investigation of alleged theft of N36 billion from a company, Woobs Resources Limited, which built a Mammy Market for the Nigerian Army in Lagos, recovering the sum of N1 billion from the perpetrators of the crime with a promise for them to refund N18 billion.
However, a petition from a lawyer, Victor Ukut, to the Inspector General of Police and Minister of Police Affairs, accusing Lafia and his team of abuse of office and other offenses changed the course of the investigations, leading to the setting up of a Team by the police to investigate the allegations against AIG Lafiya.
In the petition titled AIG Abduyari Shuaya’u Lafia and other police officers at Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB) were accused of stealing the sum of six hundred and ninety-two million, one hundred and twenty-two thousand Naira from Woobs Resources Limited’s bank accounts with Fidelity Bank PLC.
However, a police investigation report, dated December 16, 2024, exonerated Lafia and his team, finding no evidence of robbery, forgery, or abuse of office. Instead, the report recommended that some individuals connected to Woobs Resources Limited be tried.
The report dated December 16, 2024 and signed by CP Emmanuel A. Aina, psc+, Commissioner of Police, Special Enquiry Bureau (SEB) Force Criminal Investigation Department, Area 10, Garki Abuja, states in part “That there is no evidence linking AIG Abduyari Shuayau Lafia and the Investigating Police Officers with Robbery, Forgery or abuse of office as alleged by the petitioner.”
The reported added: “That there is no evidence showing transfer into the account of James Onyemenam or AIG Abduyari Shuayau Lafia as alleged.
“That there is no evidence linking AIG Abduyari Shuayau Lafia and the Investigating Police Officers with robbery, forgery or abuse of office as alleged by the petitioner.”
“That there is no evidence showing transfer into the account of James Onyemenam or AIG Abduyari Shuayau Lafia as alleged.”
The police report also indicated that the allegation that the Managing Director of Fidelity Bank PLC, Dr. Nneka C Onyeali-Ikpe, bailed herself from the FCID with the sum of N5 billion was a misrepresentation, while it clarified that the said bail was a bond on the said amount, which she filled on personal recognition.
The report noted that rather than indict the AIG Abduyari and his team, “a Prima Facie case of giving false information” has been established against the petitioner.
Despite the report’s findings, the Police Service Commission (PSC) suspended Lafia, sparking concerns about the real motive behind the action.
“It would appear that there may have been other reasons for the suspension. The senior police officer had had some disagreement with a former Inspector General of Police over fraud investigations. Maybe this is a way of whipping him into line: as senior police officer who spoke with Whitewaterdigest said.
Attempt to speak with the spokesman of the police service commission were not successful as his known phone numbers did not connect.