Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, has denied allegations of money laundering levelled against his son, Aminu Lamido, who was arrested at the Mallam Aminu Kano international airport by officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for carrying $50,000 whereas he declared only $10,000.
In a statement issued by Umar Kyari, his director of press, the governor described reports to the effect as false and mischievous.
“For the purpose of removing the notion that he embarked on money laundering on my behalf, I find it necessary to clarify the allegation,” he said. “The impression the EFCC gave that he had been carrying monies on several trips overseas on money laundering on my behalf, is false and mischievous to that extent.”
He explained that Aminu has a daughter with spinal problem, who had been taken to Cleopatra Hospital in Cairo, Egypt, since last year.
“The little girl was in the hospital for three weeks for treatment and was asked to return for the second phase of the treatment, which was done about four months ago,” he said. “At the end of the second phase of the treatment, they were asked to return to the hospital for final examination after three months.”
The statement further explained that it was on this third leg of the visit that the young girl’s father was arrested by the EFCC while trying to board Egypt Air on Tuesday around 11.30pm.
Meanwhile, 34-year-old Aminu — a 2010 graduate of Mass Communication from the Bayero University Kano — has been granted administrative bail due to the ongoing Judges’ Conference in Abuja.
According to EFCC officials in the northern state, he was released on administrative bail because there were no judges available to take his plea and since he could not held for more than 24hours.
