The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has filed a five-count charge against Jimi Lawal, a former Senior Special Adviser to ex-Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, over alleged money laundering and corruption.
The charges, filed on January 15 at the Federal High Court in Kaduna, are outlined in case number FCH/KD/16c/2025. The Assistant Chief Legal Officer of the ICPC, Dr. Osuobeni Ekpi Akponimishingha, is prosecuting the case. Lawal is being tried alongside Umar Waziri, Yusuf Inuwa, and Solar Life Nigeria Limited.
The ICPC accuses Jimi Lawal of embezzling public funds during his tenure as a public official in Kaduna State. One of the charges alleges that in 2018, Lawal “indirectly took control of the sum of N10,000,000 from the Kaduna State Accountant-General Operational Account and paid it into the bank account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited, for which he was the sole signatory.”
The commission stated, “Jimi Lawal ought to have known that the funds were part of the proceeds of corruption. By doing so, he allegedly committed an offence contrary to Section 18(2)(d) and punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”
In another charge, the ICPC alleges that Lawal, in July 2018, “indirectly took control of N47,840,000 from the Kaduna State Ministry of Finance bank account.”
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The charges also claim that in September 2018, Lawal took control of N7,320,562 from the Kaduna State Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) Account and transferred it to Solar Life Nigeria Limited’s account, which he solely controlled. The ICPC asserts that the accused knew the funds were “proceeds of an unlawful act of corruption.”
The commission further alleges that in October 2024, Lawal “made false statements to Messrs. Wellington Nkemadu and Gudi Johnson Daniel during their investigative duties.”
The ICPC explained, “Jimi Lawal claimed that the total sum of N64,800,562 — received in three tranches of N10,000,000, N47,840,000, and N7,320,562 from the Kaduna State Government through the bank account of Solar Life Nigeria Limited — was paid to Bariatu Yusuf Mohammed and Aisha Dikko as estacode.”
The commission maintains that Lawal knowingly made false statements, thereby committing an offence under Section 25(1)(a) and punishable under Section 25(1)(b) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
The outcome of this trial is likely to serve as a benchmark for how corruption cases involving political figures are handled in the country.