APC Chieftain, Danu who defrauded Nigerian Govt of N51bn fled to Dubai after implicating story

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Alhaji Nasiru Haladu Danu, who defrauded the Nigerian government of billions of naira has fled to Dubai, United Arab Emirates to avoid being investigated.

SaharaReporters had reported how Danu and some top officials of the Nigeria Customs Service diverted over N51 billion meant to improve the agency’s revenue.

Alhaji Nasiru Haladu DanuThis Day Live

A source said the fraud, which implicates the Comptroller General of the NCS, Col Hameed Ali (rtd), was named “Revenue Assurance Fraud" by some officials of the agency.

Another source said N2.5 billion was also transferred to a foundation owned by President Buhari's daughter of which Danu is a signatory.

“Some top Customs operatives and one Alhaji Nasiru Haladu Danu shared N51 billion. N2.5 billion out of the fund was transferred to a foundation owned by President Muhammadu Buhari’s daughter.

“Comptroller General Hameed Ali has been on low key since the scandal broke out. They have him by the vice grip,” one of the sources had said.

SaharaReporters on Monday gathered that Danu fled to Dubai on a private jet the day the story was published.

It was also learnt that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has begun an investigation into the fraudulent act.

The case which was directly handled by the new EFCC chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa before his appointment also implicated the Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Hussein Adamu, in whose personal account some of the fraudulent transactions were traced to.

Both Danu and Adamu are from Jigawa state.

“Also implicated as investigation net widens were two daughters of President Muhammadu Buhari, Halima and Nana-Hadiza, who are board members of a Buhari Support Organisation manned by Danu,” the source added.

In 2019, Danu made headlines when he was arrested at Heathrow Airport, United Kingdom, for an alleged passport scam and money laundering.

SaharaReporters gathered that the Dan Amana Dutse was caught with a fake Malta Passport and in his possession, more than £200,000.00 in cash.

Sources said the £200,000.00 which Danu was carrying to give to someone in the UK, according to him, was likely meant for Aisha Buhari who was then in London.

In 2019, his flagship company, Casiva was listed among the 15 consortia/companies awarded the 2019/2020 contracts for the exchange of crude oil for imported petroleum products by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.

Danu’s company was also in 2016 awarded a contract for the provision of pipeline security and maintenance services along Kaduna-Kano and Zaria-Gusau segments.