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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Crime & Justice

Immigration CG not under visa fraud investigation – EFCC

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Official statement Under investigation
  • Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) denied reports that the Immigration Service Comptroller-General, Kemi Nandap, is under investigation for visa fraud.
  • The EFCC confirmed it is investigating visa racketeering involving some immigration officers but stated Nandap has no connection to the cases.
  • The agency urged media to verify information before publication, noting that criminal proceedings are underway in court against other immigration officers for visa fraud.

Nigeria's anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has firmly denied media reports and online speculation suggesting that the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Kemi Nandap, is under investigation for alleged visa racketeering.

The commission wishes to state unequivocally that it has no case with the Immigration CG.

— Dele OyewaleEFCC Head of Media and Publicity, clarifying the agency's position on reports linking the Immigration CG to an investigation.

In a statement released on Monday by its Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, the EFCC clarified that while the commission is actively investigating visa fraud involving certain immigration officers, the NIS boss is entirely unconnected to these cases. The agency emphasized its commitment to transparency and accuracy in reporting its activities.

There are subsisting cases of alleged visa fraud against some immigration officers at the Federal High Court.

— Dele OyewaleEFCC Head of Media and Publicity, confirming ongoing legal proceedings against other immigration officers.

"The commission wishes to state unequivocally that it has no case with the Immigration CG," the statement read. The EFCC confirmed that criminal proceedings are already before the Federal High Court concerning alleged visa fraud by some immigration officers. The commission indicated that investigations are ongoing and may lead to the prosecution of additional officers in the future.

Further investigations are ongoing, with the possibility that more NIS officers could be arraigned for alleged fraudulent practices in the near future.

— Dele OyewaleEFCC Head of Media and Publicity, indicating potential future prosecutions.

The clarification comes amid allegations that senior NIS officials were linked to an ongoing EFCC investigation into a visa overstay racketeering scheme. Reports suggested that some immigration officers were allegedly accepting payments from visa overstayers instead of enforcing penalties. The EFCC urged journalists and media organizations to cross-check information with the agency before publishing to prevent the misrepresentation of its operations. The commission stated that further investigations are continuing, with the possibility of more NIS officers facing arraignment for alleged fraudulent practices.

However, the Immigration CG is not remotely connected to these investigations.

— Dele OyewaleEFCC Head of Media and Publicity, reiterating that the Immigration CG is not involved in the ongoing probes.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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