The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has charged Jimi Lawal, a former aide to ex-Kaduna State Governor Malam Nasir El-Rufai, with five counts of embezzlement. The charges, filed on January 15 at the Federal High Court in Kaduna, accuse Lawal of misappropriating millions of naira during his tenure as Senior Special Adviser/Counsellor to the former governor.
Lawal faces the charges alongside Umar Waziri, Yusuf Inuwa, and Solar Life Nigeria Limited, a company for which he is the sole signatory. The case, labeled FCH/KD/16c/2025, is being prosecuted by ICPC’s Assistant Chief Legal Officer, Dr. Osuobeni Ekpi Akponimishingha.
The ICPC alleges that in 2018, Lawal transferred ₦10 million from the Kaduna State Accountant-General’s Operational Account into the bank account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited, knowing the funds were proceeds of corruption. This act, the commission says, violates the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act of 2022.
In a second charge, the ICPC accuses Lawal of taking control of ₦47.84 million from the Kaduna State Ministry of Finance’s bank account in July 2018. Another charge alleges that in September 2018, he misappropriated ₦7.32 million from the Kaduna State Internally Generated Revenue account and funneled the funds into Solar Life Nigeria Limited.
The commission claims Lawal knew these funds were unlawfully acquired, contravening Section 18(2)(d) of the Money Laundering Act and punishable under Section 18(3).
Adding to the allegations, the ICPC states that in October 2024, during an investigation, Lawal provided false statements to officials. He allegedly claimed that ₦64.8 million—received in three separate transfers from Kaduna State government accounts—was paid as estacode to Bariatu Yusuf Mohammed and Aisha Dikko. The ICPC asserts that Lawal was aware this claim was false, violating the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act of 2000.
The charges against Lawal highlight the commission’s commitment to holding public officials accountable for corrupt practices. The trial will be closely watched as it underscores the ongoing fight against corruption in Nigeria’s public sector.
