Six leaders of a coalition of civil society organizations who accused former Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, of massive financial misconduct and procurement irregularities have been detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) under controversial circumstances.
The activists, operating under the banner of the CSOs Budget Implementation, Assessment, Evaluation and Monitoring Committee, had publicly called for an investigation into the finances of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) during Egbetokun’s tenure and announced plans for a press conference and peaceful protest on June 12, 2026.
Sources familiar with the matter told SaharaReporters that shortly after the protest plans became public, Commissioner of Police Akin Fakorede allegedly contacted the group’s leaders and arranged a meeting in Abuja.
A voice note obtained by SaharaReporters captured discussions between one of the coalition leaders, Ade Mario Emmanuel, and Fakorede regarding the proposed meeting.
According to sources, the activists attended the meeting believing they would discuss their petition and planned protest. Instead, they were reportedly arrested, detained overnight by police operatives and subsequently transferred to the EFCC.
Those currently in detention were identified as Ade Mario Emmanuel, John Adeshina, Philip, Kizito, Henry, and an unnamed female member of the coalition.
Sources alleged that the detainees are now being accused of extortion after Fakorede allegedly induced conversations relating to a demand for N200 million in exchange for suspending the planned protest and withholding information relating to the corruption allegations against the former police chief.
The coalition had earlier raised concerns over several transactions and expenditures allegedly carried out under Egbetokun’s leadership of the Nigeria Police Force.
In an invitation dated May 16, 2026, issued by the Advocacy for Good Ethics and Accountability for Development (AGEACOD), the group stated that its campaign was aimed at drawing the attention of President Bola Tinubu, anti-corruption agencies and the Nigerian public to what it described as widespread impunity and financial irregularities within the police force.
Among the allegations contained in the petition were claims that police authorities made direct payments into personal accounts for projects and services that should ordinarily have been executed through registered companies and formal procurement processes.
The coalition cited two payments of N20 million each allegedly made on September 27, 2024, to individuals identified as Afariogun Ebenezer and Bitrus Gado as medical assistance for retired DIG Gazali D. Lawal, questioning the basis and accountability for the transactions.
The petition also alleged that more than N39 million was paid to two individuals for the training of 384 Special Intervention Squad personnel despite procurement laws requiring public contracts above prescribed thresholds to follow formal contracting procedures.
Another allegation involved payments totaling over N115 million allegedly made to an individual, Adefila Oluwatosin, between May and August 2024 for the purchase of drugs and related supplies for police medical facilities.
The coalition further demanded a comprehensive audit of the Nigeria Police Safe School Intervention Programme, alleging that more than N9.22 billion had been expended on the initiative nationwide.
Additional concerns were raised over more than N5.27 billion allegedly spent through the Police Training and Development Department on teaching aids and training services between 2023 and 2024.
The petition also questioned approximately N4.9 billion allegedly spent on projects at Police Secondary School, Kabo, Kano State, citing possible duplication of contracts and requesting procurement records and contract award documents.
The activists similarly raised concerns about contracts linked to the Police Resource Centre in Jabi, Abuja, including payments exceeding N1.2 billion and N699 million allegedly made to separate companies for what they believe may have been overlapping construction projects.
Further questions were raised regarding a data analytics server project for which a company allegedly received N16.8 million in 2021 for procurement and later received more than N2.6 billion in 2023 for activation of the same platform.
The coalition insisted that the allegations were supported by payment schedules attached to its petition and called on anti-corruption agencies to independently investigate whether procurement regulations, public finance laws, and other accountability measures were violated.
The group had planned to hold a press conference at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Secretariat on June 12 before proceeding to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the EFCC headquarters to submit a formal petition demanding a full public investigation into the finances of the Nigeria Police Force under the former Inspector-General.
In the audio obtained by SaharaReporters, DCP Fakorede was heard in a telephone conversation with one of the activists, Ade Mario Emmanuel, during which he expressed a desire to meet him. Both parties agreed to meet at Wuse Zone 5 after Emmanuel informed him that he would be at K-Class Hotel in the area.
After the call ended, someone asked Emmanuel what the discussion was about. Responding in pidgin English, he said, “It is about that matter involving Egbetokun, the one I told you about concerning the alleged misappropriation of funds. I have already spoken with the EFCC chairman. They have been calling me since yesterday.”
When asked about Fakorede’s involvement in the matter, Emmanuel replied, “Perhaps his boss instructed him to meet with me. You know he cannot handle this directly, and even Egbetokun himself cannot meet with me over it. These are the people who carried out the work, so they know how to deal with such issues. The first person who contacted me, I told him it was not something that could be discussed over the phone.
“The person in possession of the documents and I decided to split the documents into two parts. If you come across one part of the information, the other part will still surface. There is no way they can defend what is contained in those documents if it becomes public, whether police officers, the media, or anyone else examines it.
“Take, for example, that police facility in Jabi. In a single year, contracts were awarded for that same project three different times. There is also a school project in Kano. The way the funds were disbursed is questionable. The money was first paid into a particular company…”
The audio ended before Emmanuel completed his explanation about the company and the Kano project.
CP Fakorede is currently serving as the Commissioner of Police in charge of the Anti-Fraud Unit at the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) Annex, Alagbon Close, Lagos.
He was redeployed there in April 2026 after leaving his role as head of the Inspector-General of Police Monitoring Unit in Abuja.
(SaharaReporters)