The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested a Lagos-based socialite and businessman, Fred Ajudua, over alleged $1.43 million fraud.
Peak Newspaper Nigeria sources said the arrest took place in Abuja on Tuesday, following a Supreme Court order issued on Friday, 5 May 2025, which revoked his bail and directed that he be remanded in the Correctional Service.
The source, who didn’t want to be named said Ajudua was arrested on Tuesday evening.
The arrest marks the latest chapter in a legal battle spanning decades between Ajudua, who faced numerous allegations of advance-fee fraud since the 1990s, and the anti-corruption agency.
The Supreme Court’s decision to revoke his bail followed an earlier ruling by the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, which had granted him bail.
Ajudua’s legal battles date back to 1993, when he was accused of defrauding a German businessman of $1.43 million.
He faced further allegations, including defrauding two Dutch nationals of $1.69 million between 1999 and 2000, and allegedly swindling former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi, of $8.4 million in 2004 while both were detained at Kirikiri Prison.
In 2016, the EFCC filed a 28-count charge against him for conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretences. The case has been plagued by repeated delays, health-related bail applications, and a failed arrest attempt in 2007.
Efforts to contact the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, proved abortive at the time of filling this report.
