The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has confirmed that former Nasir El-Rufai is currently in its custody.
In a statement signed by spokesperson J. Okor Odey on Wednesday, February 18, the commission said El-Rufai was in its custody at the close of business but did not provide details on the nature of the investigation.
El-Rufai’s detention by the ICPC follows his appearance before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday, February 16, after being invited over alleged financial improprieties during his tenure as Kaduna State governor from 2015 to 2023.
In 2024, the Kaduna State House of Assembly had indicted El-Rufai over the alleged diversion of N423 billion in public funds and money laundering, calling on anti-graft agencies to investigate him.
Reports indicate that El-Rufai spent two nights in EFCC custody and was granted bail around 8 p.m. on Wednesday, only to be immediately re-arrested by armed operatives reportedly stationed at the EFCC premises.
Days before his ICPC detention, El-Rufai claimed that Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, personally ordered his arrest upon arrival in the country.
In an interview on Arise TV on February 13, the former governor alleged that the ICPC deployed the State Security Service (DSS) to “abduct” him at the airport without prior communication.
“The DSS was procured to abduct me by the ICPC. The ICPC that has never communicated with me ever,” El-Rufai said.
He added, “I asked for a letter of invitation, and none of them had a letter of invitation to present. I refused to follow them without this invitation, and they tried to force me to go with them. One of my aides was beaten up, and my passport was seized from him.”
El-Rufai further alleged that ICPC officials later delivered a formal invitation on February 13, which his legal team agreed to honor after meeting with the EFCC.
While details of the ICPC investigation remain sketchy, El-Rufai has also faced charges relating to the alleged unlawful interception of phone communications of the NSA, Nuhu Ribadu.
According to a three-count charge filed at the Federal High Court, Abuja on February 16, 2026, prosecutors allege that the former governor admitted on Arise TV that he and unnamed associates “unlawfully intercepted the phone communications” of Ribadu, an offence under Section 12(1) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024.
Count two alleges that El-Rufai was aware of individuals responsible for the interception but failed to report them to security agencies, contrary to the same law.
In count three, the prosecution claims that El-Rufai and others still at large used technical systems that compromised public safety and national security by intercepting the NSA’s communications, in violation of Section 131(2) of the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003.
