Ex-minister Ngige in EFCC custody, says aide

Fred Chukwuelobe, media aide to Chris Ngige, says the ex-governor of Anambra state is in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

There were reports late Monday that Ngige had been kidnapped by unknown assailants.

Chukwuelobe said he had received multiple calls from friends and journalists seeking clarification on the alleged abduction.

“I have been receiving calls in the past hour from friends and journalists seeking the veracity of the news making the rounds that His Excellency, Dr. Chris Ngige, former governor of Anambra state and immediate past minister of labour and employment, ‘has been kidnapped,’” he wrote on Facebook.

“Ngige is with the EFCC. He was not ‘abducted’ or ‘kidnapped’.”

The aide said details would be provided in due course.

Dele Oyewale, EFCC spokesperson, did not respond to calls or text messages when TheCable reached out to him for confirmation.

On November 27, the ex-minister’s convoy was attacked along the Nkpor–Nnobi road in Idemili North LGA, Anambra state.

During the attack, gunmen disguised in police and army uniforms opened fire on the convoy escorts, killing a woman who was recording the incident and injuring a police officer and other civilians.

Ngige was not in the convoy at the time.