Nigerian anti-corruption agency raids office of former vice president in fraud probe

ABUJA, Nigeria, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- A Nigerian anti-corruption agency raided the offices of the country's former vice president last weekend as part of a wider fraud investigation involving multiple members of the ex-president's administration.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission conducted the raid Saturday in the Nigerian capital of Abuja at the offices of Namadi Sambo, who served under former President Goodluck Jonathan from 2010 to 2015.

Sambo is being probed in connection with an investigation into $2 billion in missing state funds that were meant for military operations against terror group Boko Haram.

Nigerian media quoted EFCC officials as saying they retrieved banking documents and listings of properties owned by Sambo outside Nigeria, including some in the United Kingdom and United States.

Vanguard reported authorities also confiscated $50,000 from a safe inside his office.

Sambo, who has not publicly commented on the raid, was reportedly outside the country at the time. He is the most senior former official to be probed by the EFCC since President Muhammadu Buhari took office last year -- but he is not the only one.

Nigeria's former national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, was charged last month for 19 counts of fraud, money laundering and criminal breach of trust -- including accusations that he laundered tens of millions of dollars from the national security budget to assist the election of members of Jonathan's People's Democratic Party.

Dasuki denied any wrongdoing, as well as earlier charges of illegal weapons possession. He had been among several defense chiefs -- including Nigeria's air marshal and its heads of the army, navy, air force, defense staff and intelligence agencies -- whom were fired and replaced by the Buhari administration in July 2015.