Former Kaduna State governor Malam Nasir El-Rufai was released on Wednesday by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) but was reportedly taken into custody shortly afterwards by operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), sources said.
Sources at the EFCC told our correspondent on Wednesday night that El-Rufai, who arrived at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja at about 10:00 a.m. on Monday for questioning, was held by the commission until his release on Wednesday. “We have released him today, but he was shortly picked up after he was released by ICPC,” one source said.
Efforts to obtain official confirmation from the ICPC were unsuccessful. Calls to the commission’s spokesman, John Odey, went unanswered. El-Rufai’s lead counsel, A.U. Mustapha (SAN), declined to comment when contacted, saying, “It is too late to talk. Let’s talk tomorrow.” Attempts to reach his media aide, Muyiwa Adeleye, were unsuccessful as the phone number provided was not reachable.
The development comes amid separate criminal proceedings filed by the Federal Government at the Federal High Court, Abuja. On Monday the government filed three counts (FHC/ABJ/CR/99/2026) against El-Rufai under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024, and the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003, alleging unlawful interception of the phone communications of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu.
According to the charge sheet, the prosecution says El-Rufai admitted during a television appearance on Arise TV’s Prime Time programme on February 13, 2026, that an unnamed associate unlawfully intercepted the NSA’s phone communications and that he listened to the calls. The three counts allege: (1) admission of unlawful interception in contravention of Section 12(1) of the Cybercrimes Act; (2) associating with and knowing of a person who unlawfully intercepted communications without reporting the matter to the authorities, contrary to Section 27(b) of the Act; and (3) the use of technical equipment in Abuja in 2026 to unlawfully intercept communications, an offence under Section 131(2) of the Nigerian Communications Act.
El-Rufai’s remarks on the programme, in which he said, “Ribadu made the call because we listened to their calls. The government thinks that they are the only ones who listen to calls. But we also have our ways,” were cited in the charge sheet as the basis for the allegations.
Separately, the Department of State Services (DSS) has reopened investigations into the 2019 disappearance of Abubakar Idris, also known as Dadiyata, a lecturer at the Federal University Dutsinma, Katsina State, who was abducted from his Kaduna residence on August 1, 2019. A security source told our correspondent that the DSS recently seized El-Rufai’s passport at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, to prevent travel abroad while inquiries continue. Investigators are also reported to be examining social media posts by two of El-Rufai’s sons, Bello and Bashir, relating to Dadiyata’s disappearance.
The sequence of detentions — custody by the EFCC followed by handover to ICPC operatives — further complicates the legal picture for the former governor, who faces both criminal charges linked to alleged phone interceptions and renewed inquiries by the DSS into a long‑running missing‑person case.
The ICPC and EFCC have not issued joint statements on the matter. The DSS has been described by sources as being on standby for any forthcoming arraignment. The matter is ongoing and our correspondent will provide updates as further official information becomes available.
