Olayiwola Matthew
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says it has taken Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna, into custody.
TheCable earlier reported that the former governor was taken into custody byDepartment of State Services (DSS) after spending two nights at the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
It is not immediately clear whether the DSS handed him over to the ICPC for the ongoing investigations.
According to J. Okor Odey, ICPC’s head of media and public communications, el-Rufai was taken into custody on Wednesday night in connection with investigations.
Okor, in a terse statement, did not disclose the nature of the investigations for which the former governor was taken into custody.
“The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) writes to state that Malam Nasiru El-Rufai the former Governor of Kaduna state is in our custody as at close of work today Wednesday the 18th day of February, 2026. Malam Nasiru El-Rufai is in the custody of the Commission in connection with investigations,” the statement reads.
On Monday, the former governor presented himself at the EFCC headquarters following an invitation regarding alleged financial improprieties during his tenure as governor of Kaduna state between 2015 and 2023.
In 2024, the Kaduna assembly indicted el-Rufai over the alleged diversion of N423 billion in public funds and money laundering and demanded that he be investigated by anti-graft agencies.
The former Kaduna governor has also been invited by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
Last Thursday, security operatives attempted to arrest el-Rufai at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, when he touched down from Cairo, the capital of Egypt.
El-Rufai would later alleged that the ICPC, at Nuhu Ribadu, the national security adviser’s instruction, asked the DSS to arrest him upon arrival.
On Saturday, during an interview on Prime Time, an Arise Television programme, el-Rufai said “someone wiretapped” Ribadu’s phone, allowing him to listen to the NSA directing security operatives to effect his arrest.
On Monday, the DSS filed a three-count charge against el-Rufai for allegedly intercepting the NSA’s telephone conversation.