The Taraba State Command of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, has intercepted a suspected human trafficker and rescued 10 minors in Jalingo.

The State Commandant, Mr Bako Amos, disclosed this in a statement issued to Journalists this weekend.

He disclosed that the arrest followed actionable intelligence received by the agency.

According to Amos, the interception was carried out at about 11:00 a.m. on Friday, January 30, 2026, at Kurmi Park in Jalingo, in collaboration with the Special Adviser to the governor of Taraba State on Human Trafficking, Mrs Sarah Ishaya.

“The suspect was apprehended while making preparations to traffic the 10 children to an unknown destination,” he said.

Amos added that both the victims and the suspect are currently in NAPTIP’s custody, while investigations are ongoing to unravel the circumstances surrounding the trafficking attempt.

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, on Friday, January 30, 2026, arraigned an alleged serial fraudster, Titilayo Funmilayo Eboh, for an alleged N247,500,000( Two Hundred and Forty-seven Million Five Hundred Thousand Naira) before Justice Justice Ramon Oshodi of the State High Court sitting in Ikeja Lagos.

Eboh, alongside Uchenna Ejindu and Salami Eneojo Stephen, was arraigned on an amended four-count charge bordering on obtaining under false pretence, conspiracy , money laundering and stealing.

The defendants allegedly conspired to defraud one Jude Nyemike Atoh of the sum of ₦247,500,000 (Two Hundred and Forty-Seven Million, Five Hundred Thousand Naira).

Investigation revealed that the defendants received the sum of money in cash under the pretence that they would provide the dollar equivalent to the petitioner, a representation they knew to be false.

One of the counts reads: “That you, Uchenna Ejindu, Musa Abdulhamid, Salami Eneojo Stephen, and Titilayo Funmilayo Eboh, sometime in July 2024 at Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, conspired to defraud Mr. Jude Nyemike Atoh of the sum of ₦247,500,000 on the pretence that you would give him the dollar equivalent, which pretence you knew to be false, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 8 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, No. 14, 2006.”

Another count reads: ” Musa Abdlhanmid (trading under the name and style of Rizqan Dayyiban Global Concept), Salami Eneojo Stephen and Titilayo Funmilayo Eboh, sometime, in July, 2024 at Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, collaborated to conceal the sum of $160,300 (One Hundred and Sixty Thousand, Three Hundred Dollars), property of one Jude Nyemike, with the aim of concealing the ilegal origin of the said sum by giving and receiving same in cash.”

The first, second and third defendants pleaded “not guilty” to counts one, two, and three, while the second and third defendants also pleaded “not guilty” to count four.

During the proceedings, prosecution counsel, T. J. Banjo informed the court that the matter had already been fixed for trial on February 27, 2026, and prayed the court to maintain the date.

Responding, counsel to the first defendant, Victor Okpara, SAN, told the court that his client had been on bail since May 15, 2025, and had diligently attended all court proceedings.

He also urged the court to allow him to continue to enjoy the existing bail conditions.

Counsel to the second defendant, Dehinde Dipeolu, aligned with the submission of Okpara.

Counsel to the third defendant, Mike Umonnan, informed the court that he had filed a bail application and also prayed for an earlier date to move the application in view of the health condition of his client.

The prosecution counsel, however, vehemently opposed the bail application of the third defendant and also urged the court to remand her in a correctional centre, citing difficulties previously encountered by the Commission in arresting her.

Justice Oshodi, consequently, adjourned the matter till February 12, 2026, for the hearing of the third defendant’s bail application and also ordered that she be remanded at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre.

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In 2010, as thousands of Nigerian pensioners queued endlessly for unpaid benefits, Abdulrasheed Maina, then chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms, was quietly acquiring luxury properties abroad.

In August of that year, Mr Maina purchased a $215,000 house in Kentucky, United States, paying cash with no mortgage, according to property records reviewed by Premium Times and its investigative partners.

That transaction marked the beginning of a string of foreign property acquisitions allegedly funded with money diverted from Nigeria’s pension system.

A cross-border investigation by Premium Times, the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), and the Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa (PPLAAF) has revealed that between 2010 and 2013, Mr Maina acquired four properties in the United States and the United Arab Emirates worth over $1.3m.

The purchases coincided with the period Nigerian authorities later alleged that Mr Maina siphoned millions of dollars from pension funds under his control.

Property records show that:

In August 2010, Mr Maina bought a house in Frankfort, Kentucky, for $215,000 in cash.

In 2011, through VIU Investment LLC, a company he controlled, he purchased two more homes in Kentucky for a combined $415,000, again paying cash.

In June 2013, he bought a two-bedroom hotel apartment in Dubai for nearly $700,000, shortly after he was removed from office.

The Dubai property is currently registered in the name of his daughter, Farida Abdulrasheed Maina.

Timing Raises Questions

Court documents indicate that Mr Maina and his personal secretary allegedly diverted over $1m from pension funds between 2010 and 2013—a timeline that aligns closely with the property purchases.

According to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Maina fraudulently obtained $1.8m from public funds through pension biometrics contracts shortly before buying the first US property.

Divorce Deal Transfers US Property

The investigation further revealed that Mr Maina’s ex-wife, Laila Abdulrasheed Maina, gained ownership of one of the US properties through a divorce settlement.

In 2022, a Kentucky court dissolved their 30-year marriage and awarded Laila the $215,000 Frankfort home, which Mr Maina had bought in 2010 with cash.

At the time of the divorce, Mr Maina had already been convicted of money laundering in Nigeria.

The EFCC did not attempt to seize the US properties, and their existence had not been publicly disclosed until now.

EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale told PREMIUM TIMES that the agency would likely investigate any foreign assets linked to illicit proceeds if provided with sufficient information.

Asset Transfers and Trusts

As corruption allegations intensified in Nigeria, Mr Maina began reshuffling ownership of his American properties.

In January 2013, he transferred the two Kentucky homes owned by VIU Investment LLC first to himself and then to the Abdulrasheed Maina Children’s Trust.

He fled Nigeria for Dubai in March 2013.

When he returned in 2017, public outrage followed revelations that he had been secretly reinstated into the civil service despite being a fugitive.

Arrest, Trial and Conviction

Mr Maina was declared wanted by the EFCC, arrested in 2019, and charged with money laundering.

In November 2021, Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court sentenced him to eight years’ imprisonment for laundering N2bn in pension funds.

“The convict’s salary as a civil servant was a little above N300,000 and could not have amounted to N2bn even if he saved for 35 years,” the judge held.

Mr Maina fled trial once more but was rearrested in Niger Republic and extradited to Nigeria.

His son, Faisal Maina, was also convicted in a separate money laundering case and sentenced in absentia after fleeing to the United States.

Early Release, Public Outrage

The Nigerian Correctional Service confirmed that Mr Maina was released on February 25, 2025, following statutory remission for good behaviour.

He resurfaced publicly last week after a branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) named him a patron and presented him with a “Rule of Law and Courage Award.”

The NBA national leadership swiftly disowned the award and announced disciplinary action against the branch officials involved.

Two Names, Two Jurisdictions

Following her divorce, Laila changed her name in the US to Laila Duke Williams in late 2022.

However, in Nigeria, she continues to operate under Laila Abdulrasheed Maina, incorporating two companies in 2024 using that name, according to Corporate Affairs Commission records.

Both Mr Maina and his ex-wife hold dual Nigerian and American citizenship.

In Kentucky, Laila declared herself unemployed during divorce proceedings.

Yet earlier, she had filed affidavits in Nigerian courts claiming ownership of several properties the EFCC sought to confiscate, insisting they were bought from proceeds of an African fabric export business.

The EFCC countered that no evidence supported such claims.

In 2024, all 23 Nigerian properties linked to Mr Maina—including one bought with $1.4m cash—were finally forfeited to the Federal Government.

Assets Beyond Nigeria’s Reach

While Nigerian authorities recovered domestic assets, Mr Maina’s foreign properties remain beyond their reach.

Former US Justice Department official Stefan Cassella said American authorities could pursue money laundering charges against Laila if it is proven she knowingly benefited from criminal proceeds.

“If she knew the property was criminally derived, she could face charges in the US,” Cassella said, noting that the statute of limitations has not yet expired.

According to Premium Times, both Mr Maina and Laila declined to respond to multiple requests for comment.

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