EFCC declares ex-pension boss Abdulrasheed Maina wanted

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has declared Abdulrasheed Abdullahi Maina, former chairman of the defunct Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT), wanted over an alleged case of receiving stolen property.The commission announced Mr Maina’s wanted status in a notice signed by its Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, and published on Wednesday.

The EFCC described Mr Maina, 61, as an indigene of Biu, Borno State, and urged anyone with information about his whereabouts to contact the commission or other security agencies.The commission listed its offices in Abuja, Lagos, Ibadan, Uyo, Sokoto, Maiduguri, Benin, Makurdi, Kaduna, Ilorin, Enugu, Kano, Gombe and Port Harcourt as locations where information could be provided.It also provided a telephone number and email address in the notice, while urging members of the public to contact the nearest police station or other security agencies.

The latest declaration comes months after Mr Maina failed to appear before the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja, where he is facing a separate criminal trial over the alleged receipt of N738.6 million in stolen funds.He is being prosecuted alongside Ann Igwe Olachi on a nine-count charge.

Both defendants pleaded not guilty when they were arraigned in 2019.Court had threatened to revoke Maina’s bailIn February, Justice Abubakar Kutigi of the FCT High Court in Asokoro expressed frustration over repeated delays in the case and threatened to revoke Mr Maina’s bail.Mr Maina’s lawyer had sought an adjournment and presented a hospital referral letter, but the judge rejected the request, noting that the document did not indicate that his client was ill.“If your client cannot come to court, I will revoke his bail and let them go and get him,” Justice Kutigi said.“The last time he appeared in court was more than three years ago. I am fed up with this case. I’ve been in this profession for over 35 years. I have never seen a case like this.

”The judge also said the defence’s actions had stalled the proceedings.“The antics have stalled proceedings completely,” he said.The court had earlier committed to proceeding with the trial whether or not Mr Maina was present.The prosecution alleges that Mr Maina and Ms Olachi received money from companies involved in contracts for biometric enrolment of pensioners.

At a February hearing, an EFCC investigator, Gogi Mohammed, testified about alleged payments and properties linked to Mr Maina. The defence objected to the admissibility of statements allegedly made by the defendants, prompting the court to schedule a trial-within-trial to determine how the statements were obtained.Maina already convicted in separate money-laundering case

The latest EFCC wanted notice is separate from Mr Maina’s previous money-laundering conviction.In November 2021, the Federal High Court in Abuja convicted him over money-laundering offences involving more than N2 billion in pension funds and sentenced him to eight years in prison.The Court of Appeal upheld the conviction and sentence in May 2023.

Mr Maina was released from custody on 25 February 2025 after serving part of his sentence.The Nigerian Correctional Service said his release was based on statutory remission for good conduct and that his sentence had commenced from the date of his arrest in October 2019.

His earlier trial had been disrupted by his absence from court after he jumped bail. He was subsequently arrested in Niger Republic in November 2020 and extradited to Nigeria to face trial.

Previous wanted declaration

The latest EFCC declaration is not the first time Mr Maina has been declared wanted by the commission.In 2015, the EFCC declared him wanted over a separate case involving alleged procurement fraud and pension biometric contracts. The case also involved former Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Steve Oronsaye, and others.Mr Maina later became the subject of renewed public controversy after a PREMIUM TIMES investigation in 2017 revealed his reinstatement and promotion in the federal civil service while he was wanted by the EFCC.His current wanted status relates to the commission’s allegation of receiving stolen property, while the separate N738.6 million case before the FCT High Court remains ongoing.