EFCC arraigns man over N56m pilgrimage fraud

Lawal Musa faces charges for allegedly defrauding individuals of N56.4 million through a fraudulent Hajj pilgrimage scheme. The Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) brought Musa before Justice Olusola Adetujoye at the Oyo State High Court in Ibadan.

According to the EFCC's statement on X, Musa allegedly approached Ibrahim Shuaibu, claiming to represent the Kaduna State Government and offering to facilitate the 2023 Hajj pilgrimage. Shuaibu then informed several friends involved in cattle breeding in the Oke-Ogun area of Ibadan. These individuals collectively paid N56,491,000 to Shuaibu, who subsequently transferred the funds to Musa for the purported pilgrimage arrangements.

However, the EFCC stated that none of the victims were able to travel to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj pilgrimage in 2023, attributing this failure to Musa's alleged "fraudulent refusal to fulfil his promise." The commission has arraigned Musa on a 57-count charge that includes forgery, uttering of documents, and stealing.

One of the charges details how Musa allegedly converted the N56,491,000, intended for the Hajj pilgrimage for multiple individuals, to his personal use between November 2022 and July 2024. Other charges include forging a Kaduna State Pilgrims Welfare Agency receipt and uttering a similar forged receipt to a victim, Jibril Adamu, with the intent that it be acted upon as genuine.