THE Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has confirmed that former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El‑Rufai, is in its custody.
In a statement signed by its spokesperson, J. Okor Odey, on Wednesday, February 18, the commission said El-Rufai was in its custody as of the close of work but did not disclose the nature of its probe.
The development followed the former governor’s detention by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), where he presented himself on Monday, February 16, after an invitation over alleged financial improprieties during his tenure as Kaduna State governor between 2015 and 2023.
In 2024, the Kaduna State House of Assembly indicted the former governor over the alleged diversion of N423 billion in public funds and money laundering, urging anti-graft agencies to investigate him.
Report indicated that El-Rufai, who spent two nights in EFCC custody, was granted bail at about 8 p.m. on Wednesday but was immediately re-arrested by armed operatives who reportedly laid in wait at the EFCC premises.
Backstory
Days before his detention by the ICPC, El-Rufai had alleged that Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, personally ordered his arrest upon arrival in the country.
Speaking in an interview on Arise TV on February 13, the former governor claimed the ICPC deployed the State Security Service to ‘abduct’ him at the airport without prior communication.
The ICIR reported how the former governor’s media aide said security personnel attempted to arrest him on arrival from Cairo at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, leading to a brief confrontation captured in viral videos.
“The DSS was procured to abduct me by the ICPC. The ICPC that has never communicated with me ever,” he said.
“I asked for a letter of invitation, and none of them had a letter of invitation to present. I refused to follow them without this invitation, and they tried to force me to go with them. One of my aides was beaten up, and my passport was seized from him,” he said.
The former governor further alleged that ICPC officials later delivered a letter inviting him for questioning on February 13, adding that his legal team indicated willingness to honour the invitation after meeting with the EFCC.
FG arraigns El-rufai
While details of the investigation by the ICPC is still sketchy, the former minister had been charged with 3-count charges bordering on unlawfully interception of the phone communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
The three-count charge, instituted at the Federal High Court, Abuja, and dated February 16, 2026, also stemmed from statements El-Rufai made during his appearance on Arise TV’s Prime Time programme.
In count one, prosecutors alleged that the former governor admitted during the interview that he and unnamed associates “unlawfully intercepted the phone communications” of Ribadu, an offence said to be punishable under Section 12(1) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024.
Count two further accused him of acknowledging knowledge of individuals responsible for the interception but failing to report them to security agencies, contrary to provisions of the same law.
In count three, the prosecution alleged that El-Rufai and others still at large used technical systems that compromised public safety and national security by intercepting the NSA’s communications, an offence punishable under Section 131(2) of the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M