Department of State Services arrests former minister Obanikoro’s wife over alleged N4.745b arms fraud

The former minister, Musiliu Obanikoro and his wife

Security agents yesterday arrested Hajiya Morufat Obanikoro, former Minister of Defence in Nigeria,  Musiliu Obanikoro’s wife. Mrs. Obanikoro was picked up over the ongoing investigation of her husband, who is wanted for questioning over the N4.745billion slush funds from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). The funds were reportedly traced to Obanikoro, Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose, former Osun State Deputy Governor Iyiola Omisore and three companies with links to Omisore. According to the Nation, Mrs. Obanikoro, who was transferred by the DSS to the EFCC, was later released by the anti-graft agency after a bail. Her international passport was impounded. Sources said her bail is with the condition of surety support of a landed property owner in Lagos. She was requested to return on Monday for interrogation.
According to sources, Mrs. Obanikoro allegedly arrived in the country last weekend from the United States. It was learnt that she was arrested by the DSS in Lagos while sorting out some documents relating to the ongoing investigation of her  husband.
A source said: “We got a report that Mrs. Obanikoro had sneaked into the country from the United States. After the confirmation of her travel log, an alert was issued to all security agencies.
“Following intelligence sharing with the EFCC, the operatives of the DSS arrested her in Lagos with some documents relating to the probe of the N4.745billion slush funds from ONSA.
Another source spoke of excitement about Mrs. Obanikoro’s arrest because “some of the funds under investigation were wired into her company, which is called MOB.
“She needs to explain to this commission what job she did to deserve such remittance into her account,” the source said.