Nigeria Police Deny Removing 2017 Budget Documents From Goje’s House
BEVERLY HILLS, April 27, (THEWILL) – The Nigeria Police Force has explained that the search it conducted in Senator Danjuma Goje's house has nothing to do with the 2017 budget as alleged by reports in the media credited to him.
Police operatives on April 20 searched Goje's house situated at No. 10 Haile Salasie Street, Asokoro District Abuja, following intelligence report at the disposal of the force.
The National Assembly had given the Nigeria Police Force a 24-hour ultimatum to return the budget documents allegedly carted away from Goje's house in Abuja.
But in a statement in Abuja on Thursday, Force Public Relations Officer, FPRO, CSP Jimoh Moshood said the report was false, misleading and capable of misinforming Nigerians.
He insisted that the search warrant duly obtained from the court of competent jurisdiction was professionally executed in Goje's house.
“It is pertinent to set the record straight and inform Nigerians of the facts of the matter,” he said.
Moshood said that on arrival of the Police team to Goje's house, the housekeeper, Ango Usman, informed him of the presence and mission of the team and he promised coming but later switched off his phone.
“The search warrant was successfully executed in the presence of three close relatives of Goje who reside in the house and the recoveries were made in their presence,” he said.
The relatives are Danjuma Mohammed, Ango Usman, the housekeeper to Goje and Aisha Umar, a stepdaughter to Goje.
He said that the relatives opened the house and took the Police team round the building, and endorsed their signatures after the completion of the search as required by law.
He said the items on the search warrant contained the money, documents and laptop recovered, and that none of the items included the 2017 budget document.
The Force spokesman revealed that items recovered include, N18 m; $19,850; 9, 400 Saudi Riyals; 38 Files and six envelopes containing documents; file on funds spent on security administration and information gathering in 2009.
Others are a file on the release of fund for Special operations in 2009; file on Gombe State Government of Nigeria Cash inflow, 2005; file on Project 2007 and Executive Briefs on how to fight opposition in Gombe State, Strategies and Tactics.
He said there were also Envelopes containing permit to operate as an Oil Industry Service Company (special categories) 2011; file containing write-ups on how Gov. Shekarau plotted the assassination of Sheikh Jafaru and Letters from Mohammed Goje to the MD LUBELL Nigeria Ltd. of proposed residential Development at Kashere Phase II dated Jan. 1, 2007 and Nov. 19, 2010.
Moshood said that there was no single document relating to the 2017 budget sighted or removed by the Police team that executed the search warrant.
He said that the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris, honoured the invitation of the National Assembly to explain the legality of the search warrant in Goje's house.
The FPRO also stated that further investigation was ongoing into the matter, adding that Police actions were in line with the provisions of Sec. 4 and 28 of Police Act and Regulations.
“The Nigeria Police Force sees the report in the media credited to Sen. Danjuma Goje as a deliberate distraction to cast aspersion on Police investigation to pervert the end of justice,” he said.
He urged members of the public to disregard the report as the search warrant was professionally executed.