Ex-boss of Pension, Maina fled to the Republic of Niger on a motorcycle – Police.
The former chairman of the late Pension Reform Task Force, Abdulrasheed Maina, arrested in the Republic of Niger last Tuesday, hired a biker to escape to the Republic of Niger by the State of Sokoto, according to a police investigation.
It was learned that Maina, which faces charges of money laundering amounting to N2 billion, took action to flee the country on a motorcycle in order not to raise the suspicion of security officers.
According to intelligence sources, Maina fled the country just days after a Federal High Court granted him bail with a sitting senator, Ali Ndume, standing as his bail.
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He rented a bike and took advantage of the porosity of the nation’s borders to escape through the border city of Sokoto, Ilella, and landed in KonI in the Republic of Niger. He had previously tried to escape from Katsina state to Mariachi in the Republic of Niger.
However, he changed his mind at the last minute after suspecting that his identity would be revealed. He was allegedly arrested at the US embassy in Niamey, where he claimed to be an American citizen,” the police told Vanguard.
His arrest occurred after days of frenetic research by Interpol detectives from Nigeria and the Republic of Niger while he was using a satellite-operated Thuraya telephone to evade the place and arrest.
It was reported that the initial challenge for detectives was to locate the exact city in the Republic of Niger where Maina was hibernating. Their efforts were made more difficult because, according to sources, Maina consistently used a Thuraya telephone, which uses satellite signals, to track messages from telephone networks.
Maina was later arrested by Interpol at Niamey on behalf of Interpol Nigeria on the basis of the arrest warrant issued against him by the court.
His arrest was officially disclosed to Interpol, Abuja, via the i247 network, even though the two countries were working together on the fugitive.
