In Abuja, the capital of the country, the Department of State Services (DSS) and Ibrahim Magu, the acting chairman of the Economic & Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), were the main players in a scene involving confusion, detention, denial, and interrogation. The DSS denied that its agents had arrested Magu, despite early reports that suggested he had been taken into custody by DSS personnel. “The Department of State Services, DSS, wishes to inform the public that it did not arrest Ibrahim Magu, acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, as has been reported by sections of the media,” said Peter Afunanya, DSS Public Relations Officer, in a statement. Since July 6, 2020, the service has been deluged with inquiries regarding the purported arrest.
According to the EFCC, Magu accepted an invitation to testify before a panel seated in the Presidential Villa but was neither detained nor compelled to leave. “He was served the invitation to the panel, while on his way to the Force Headquarters, Abuja, for a meeting,” said EFCC spokesman Dele Oyewale, who denied that Magu was detained or made to appear before a panel at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. Instead, he went to the Banquet Hall wing of the Presidential Villa. Magu said that he traveled Mr. Umar’s private jet but denied having a “penchant for air travels.”
