Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested businesswoman and socialite, Aisha Achimugu, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

Achimugu was apprehended around 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday upon her return from London. A senior EFCC official confirmed the arrest in a telephone conversation with Channels Television.

The EFCC had declared Achimugu wanted in March over allegations of criminal conspiracy and money laundering.

Her lawyer, Chikaosolu Ojukwu (SAN), confirmed the arrest, stating: “Aisha Achimugu, who voluntarily returned to Nigeria from London, was arrested by the EFCC around 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday.”

He criticised the arrest, calling it a breach of a subsisting court order. “In light of proceedings in court on Monday, my client returned based on an undertaking to honour the EFCC’s invitation, but was nonetheless arrested at the airport,” he said.

Ojukwu also disclosed that Achimugu had commenced a hunger strike in protest, describing her as “a prisoner of conscience.”

EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale had yet to confirm the arrest at the time of reporting.

Achimugu’s arrest came a day after Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered her to appear before the EFCC on Tuesday, and in court on Wednesday, 30 April 2025.

The order was issued in a ruling on a suit Achimugu filed against several law enforcement agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Department of State Services (DSS), the EFCC, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).

In its response to the suit, EFCC counsel Ekele Iheanacho submitted a counter-affidavit sworn by one of the Commission’s investigators, Chris Odofin. Odofin stated that Achimugu is under investigation for alleged conspiracy, obtaining money by false pretence, money laundering, corruption, and possessing property suspected to have been unlawfully acquired.

The EFCC noted that Achimugu honoured an initial invitation on 12 February 2024, gave a written statement, and was granted administrative bail through her lawyer and surety, Darlington N. Ozurumba.

However, she reportedly failed to honour subsequent reporting obligations and instead filed a fundamental rights enforcement suit.

In her statement to investigators, Achimugu explained that N8.71 billion was paid into her company’s bank accounts as an “investment fund” for acquiring an oil block. She claimed the funds were later transferred to the Federal Government through her company, Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited, and referenced documentation from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).

The EFCC, however, contends that her firm acquired two oil blocks—Shallow Water PPL 3007 and Deep Offshore PPL 302-DO—at a cost of $25.3 million, with the payments allegedly made in cash through bureau de change operators. The sources of the funds, the Commission said, could not be traced to any legitimate business income or partnerships.

The EFCC also alleged that the acquisition process was riddled with corruption and that neither of the two oil blocks had commenced exploration or production as at the time of the investigation.

The Commission maintains that Achimugu’s lawsuit is a deliberate attempt to obstruct an ongoing investigation, citing an earlier court ruling (Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/451/2024) which dismissed her claims of rights violations.