EFCC Offers 5% Reward for Tips on Stolen Assets Abroad

Ola Olukoyede, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), announced a reward scheme offering whistleblowers between 2.5% and 5% of recovered stolen Nigerian assets for information leading to their recovery. This announcement was made during a lecture at the Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime in the United Kingdom.

Olukoyede emphasized the importance of whistleblower protection and the agency's capability to trace assets, aided by cooperation from the judiciary and credible intelligence. He reported that the EFCC has forfeited cash and assets worth over $500 million to the Federal Government in the past three years.

He cited successful forfeiture cases involving a former Chairman of the Central Bank of Nigeria and an ex-Attorney-General of the Federation. Olukoyede explained the EFCC's constitutional empowerment to seek forfeiture orders from the High Court, similar to practices in Australia and Canada, and provided examples of significant forfeitures, including an aircraft linked to a $30 million bribe.