Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC, Enugu Zone, have questioned a Briton, and others over an alleged N300 million fraud in International Equitable Association Ltd (IEA), an Industrial and Commercial Company, located at Umungasi, Aba, Abia state.
The alleged fraud, said to be one among many others that had rocked the company, has almost crippled the company.
The Briton, one Brain Voakes, was arrested alongside other suspects following a petition by one Chief John Onwukwe, a shareholder and director of the company, said to have voluntarily retired from the company as an Assistant Accountant.
The petition entitled, “N300 Million Fraud(allegedly) Perfected By Mr. Brian Voakes and other Directors Uncovered At IEA Ltd”, dated May 7, 2008 and addressed to ICPC, was said to have been transferred to the EFCC for investigate.
Onwukwe, who said he was appointed a shareholder and director of the Company on May 6, 2000, alleged that the N300 million was taken from “a signing off agreement with Colgate Palm Olive Company, while the sum of N1 690,000,000:00 was paid to IEA Ltd, to offset the debt incurred by Colgate when it was managing IEA Ltd.
Corrupt Practices and siphoning of funds in IEA Ltd was also queried by the auditors of Deloitte. Even other departments like the Senate Committee on police Affairs, the Nigerian police and the State Security Service.
The petition noted that many Nigerians have lost their jobs in IEA through indiscriminate sack and intimidation, adding that the Company has been turned into a Mobile police post used to further intimidate Nigerians any time they question the activities or fraud perpetuated by the syndicate.
The hope of Nigerians , the Petition said is that EFCC will save their soul by arresting all those involved in defrauding the company.
Meanwhile, Chief Alphonsus Udeigbo, also a shareholder, of the company has said that investigation into the matter will uncover monumental fraud in the company perpetuated by the group amounting to billions of naira.
“It will no doubt lead to the recovery of the looted treasury of the company as well as bringing the culprits to book,”he said.
The general manager of the company, Mr. Shola Ajayi confirmed that a petition was written, saying “I went to Enugu yesterday on the same matter. If a petition is written against somebody, he will be invited to answer to such allegations. It does not mean that the person has committed such crime”.
He said that the petitioner was allegedly settled and an agreement reached by the petitioner in 2003, that they will not pursue the matter again after which he was paid N5 million and one Chief Sunday also paid the same amount.