The immediate past Governor of Kwara State, Abdulfattah Ahmed, was arraigned in court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday at the Federal High Court in Ilorin, the state capital.

According to a document by the anti-graft agency released on Thursday, Ahmed was accused of spending N1.6 billion meant for the security and running costs in the state to charter private jets while he was in power. He is also facing 12 counts of alleged N10 billion fraud.

In one of the counts, the EFCC alleged that Ahmed fraudulently converted an amount of N1 million out of a N1 billion short-term loan received by the Kwara State Government from Ecobank Nigeria Limited to complete ongoing projects in the state.

The EFCC stated that, as Governor of Kwara State between 2015 and 2019, Ahmed used an aggregate sum of N1.6 billion, which belonged to the Kwara State Government, to charter private jets through Travel Messengers Limited on different occasions for his local travels. The agency further claimed that the sum Ahmed used was part of the proceeds of his unlawful act, which was a criminal breach of trust or theft, and he should have reasonably known that.

Ahmed had previously served as the state finance commissioner when Dr Bukola Saraki was the governor and succeeded Saraki in office, governing Kwara from 2011 to 2019.