The Department of State Services has arrested five security officers who allegedly facilitated former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s unauthorized entry into restricted areas at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on February 12, 2026.
The arrested officers include Ayuba Yakubu, an Assistant Superintendent of Police; Murtala Inuwa, a DSS operative; Najeeb Murtala, an Assistant Superintendent of Immigration; and Musa Adamu and Salihu Victor, both from Aviation Security.
According to an official statement from the security agency, the arrests followed a joint investigation by the DSS, the Nigeria Immigration Service, the Nigeria Customs Service, and the Federal Ministry of Aviation.
“They have all confessed to receiving bribes to facilitate unauthorized entry into restricted areas, to obstruct lawful security operations in an unprecedented manner,” the statement said .
The suspects have been handed over to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission for prosecution .
The statement further indicated that other officers from the NIS and NCS who did not take bribes but abused their uniforms to facilitate unauthorized access will still face administrative action .
The incident dates back to February 12 when El-Rufai returned from Cairo, Egypt. The former governor had earlier alleged that security operatives attempted to detain him at the airport without a formal invitation . His spokesman, Muyiwa Adekeye, had announced at the time that security agents seized his principal’s international passport from an aide .
El-Rufai later honoured an invitation from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission three days after the airport incident and has been in detention since then in connection with corruption allegations relating to his administration as governor of Kaduna State between 2015 and 2023 .
