Public funds moved from LG account into crypto wallets – EFCC

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has revealed how public funds were diverted from a local government account to private entities before being transferred to cryptocurrency wallets. EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede explained that the agency detected the suspicious transactions and froze the funds for 72 hours to determine their destination and purpose.

Olukoyede expressed dissatisfaction with those calling for his dismissal over the action taken by his agency. He emphasized the need for law enforcement agencies to proactively prevent suspicious transactions instead of only reacting to stolen funds. Olukoyede stated that public officials had been using cryptocurrency wallets to launder stolen funds, often giving them to young people to open accounts and move the money abroad within hours.

The EFCC has developed the capacity to trace cryptocurrency wallets, particularly those linked to virtual asset platforms registered in Nigeria, and recovered virtual assets in connection with the CBEX fraud. The government has also approved the establishment of a national confiscation wallet where recovered virtual assets would be stored.