Nigeria: No, Nigeria's Financial Crimes Commission Did Not Arrest Former Minister of Aviation in April 2023

27 April 2023
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Abisola Olasupo

IN SHORT: Despite claims on social media, Nigeria's former minister of aviation hasn't been arrested in 2023 - the rumours hark back to an incident in November 2021.

A claim is circulating on Facebook in Nigeria that former minister of aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has been arrested by the Economic Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) for forgery and manipulation of documents.

"Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC arrested a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode. It was gathered that the human rights lawyer was nabbed over alleged manipulation and forgery of documents," one post reads.

Some of the posts include a screenshot of what appears to be a social media post by online media platform Daily Post Nigeria. The headline in the screenshot reads "Breaking: EFCC arrests Fani-Kayode" and it includes a photo of the former minister.

The EFCC is the federal anti-graft agency responsible for investigating and enforcing laws on financial crime in Nigeria.

Femi Fani-Kayode was minister of aviation from 2006 to 2007. He was the director of new media for the presidential campaign of the ruling All Progressives Congress in the February 2023 general election.

The claim was posted on Facebook here, here, here, here and here.

But did the EFCC arrest Fani-Kayode over manipulation and forgery of documents?

'Fake story,' says Fani-Kayode

We checked Daily Post's website for the claim and did find one report of his arrest for alleged forgery and document falsification. But the article was from November 2021.

It is being shared on Facebook with the claim that the arrest took place in April 2023.

Fani-Kayode said on his official Twitter account on 16 April that the claim of his recent arrest is a "fake story".

"When the Obidients, Obidiots and members of the cult of Obidati put out a fake story on social media that I have been arrested by the EFCC it amuses me," he tweeted.

The claim that Fani-Kayode was arrested by the EFCC in 2023 is false. It comes from a November 2021 news report which has resurfaced online.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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