The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has taken former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, into custody.
The anti-graft agency confirmed that El-Rufai was being held as of the close of work on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, though it did not reveal details of the investigation.
His detention comes shortly after he was earlier questioned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged financial misconduct linked to his time in office between 2015 and 2023. He had honoured an invitation from the EFCC on Monday, February 16.
In 2024, the Kaduna State House of Assembly accused the former governor of diverting about ₦423 billion in public funds and engaging in money laundering, calling on relevant agencies to probe the allegations.
Reports indicated that El-Rufai spent two nights in EFCC custody and was granted bail on Wednesday evening. However, he was reportedly arrested again moments later by armed operatives stationed at the EFCC premises.
Prior to the ICPC action, El-Rufai had alleged that Nigeria’s National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, ordered his arrest. In a television interview on February 13, he claimed security operatives attempted to detain him at the airport without any formal communication from the ICPC.
According to accounts from his media team, security personnel tried to arrest him on arrival from Cairo at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, resulting in a brief confrontation that circulated widely online.
Amid the ongoing corruption investigation, the Federal Government, through the Department of State Services (DSS), has also filed criminal charges against El-Rufai at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The charges relate to alleged unlawful interception of the NSA’s phone communications.
The case followed comments made by the former governor during a live television interview, where he claimed the NSA’s phone was tapped and that he overheard instructions to detain him. Prosecutors alleged that his actions violated provisions of Nigeria’s cybercrime and communications laws.
No date has been fixed for his arraignment, and El-Rufai has yet to make a public response to the charges.
President Obasanjo on Nasir El Rufai in his book My Watch Volume 2: Page 110 – 112
“Nasir’s penchant for reputation savaging is almost pathological. Why does he do it? Very early in my interaction with him, I appreciated his talent. At the same time, I recognised his weaknesses; the worst being his inability to be loyal to anybody or any issue consistently for long… He lied brazenly, which he did to me, against his colleagues and so-called friends… My vivid recollection of him is penchant for lying, for unfair embellishment of stories, and his inability to sustain loyalty for long… He was described as a malicious liar. He was more than that; he is a pathological purveyor of untruths and half-truths with little or no regard for integrity.”
A snake is a SNAKE!
