The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has reaffirmed that former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Jibrin Usman (Rtd.), and Brigadier-General Ishaya Bauka remain on its wanted list over their alleged involvement in a ₦3 billion fraud.
In a statement issued on Friday by the Director of Public Enlightenment and Education and Spokesperson for the Commission, Demola Bakare, the ICPC dismissed reports suggesting that the duo had been cleared of wrongdoing following an amendment to their charges.
“The claim that the amended charges have exonerated the duo of embezzlement and abuse of office is false and purely a figment of the writers’ imagination,” the commission stated.
According to the anti-graft agency, a valid arrest warrant remains in effect for Usman and Bauka, and it urged members of the public to assist in their apprehension.
“It should be clearly stated that there is a subsisting arrest warrant against the two ex-military officers. Whoever sees them could assist in bringing them to justice,” Bakare added.
The ICPC clarified that the amendment of charges was a standard legal procedure and did not signify any clearance of the accused. “ICPC does not clear anybody of a case already in court. When those at large are arrested, they will be added back to the initial charge,” the commission explained.
The statement also recalled that Vice Admiral Usman had initially been charged alongside five others on April 17, 2023. The charges were reportedly served on the defendants via their legal representatives, but they failed to appear before the court, prompting the issuance of a bench warrant for their arrest.
One of the original defendants, Adam Imam Yusuf, was recently apprehended in Abuja’s Gwagwalada Area Council on February 4, 2025, while Usman and Bauka remain at large.
The ICPC reassured the public that efforts to arrest the two former military officers were ongoing. “If they are arrested today, the ongoing charges will be amended to accommodate the allegations initially filed against them,” Bakare concluded.
