A police officer, Nkeiruka Nwode, has explained how investigators used the “follow the money” principle in probing alleged illegal withdrawals from the bank account of a suspect, linking the transactions to Nnamdi Emeh.
In a statement on Friday, Nwode said the investigation began on January 21, 2023, after a lawyer, Barrister Nweke, and a woman identified as Ekwueme reported the disappearance of their relative, Chibuike Ekwueme, and suspicious withdrawals from his bank account.
According to her, attempts were made to invite Emeh for questioning after financial transactions were traced to him, but he allegedly refused to appear before investigators.
Nwode said investigators then adopted the “follow the money” approach, a financial crime investigation method used to trace the origin, movement and beneficiaries of suspicious funds.
She said receipts provided by the complainant showed that about ₦46 million was deposited in stages into a First Bank account belonging to Oliver Iloama Azubike.
Further investigations allegedly revealed that another account used in the transactions belonged to Brickwood Tech International Limited, a company linked to Emeh and domiciled in Access Bank.
The officer said the First Bank account was traced to a Bureau de Change operator in Onitsha identified as Oliver Iloama, who was subsequently arrested.
According to Nwode, Iloama told investigators that the account was provided at the request of a Department of State Services operative identified as Paul Okorie, and that the funds were later converted to $56,000 and handed to a Sterling Bank employee, Obiora Onyedika.
She said the banker was later arrested at his workplace and allegedly confirmed receiving the money on behalf of the DSS operative.
Nwode added that documents obtained from the Corporate Affairs Commission showed that Brickwood Tech International Limited was registered in December 2021 with Emeh listed as the sole owner and person with significant control.
According to her, the company account also received transfers of ₦10 million and ₦3 million from the account of the suspect at the centre of the case.
The officer further alleged that the suspect claimed Emeh and another police officer forced him to disclose his bank login details and cryptocurrency wallet credentials while in detention, leading to the withdrawal of about $19,100 from his Bitcoin wallet.
Nwode also alleged that Emeh refused to honour invitations from investigators while the probe was ongoing.
She said more details about the case, including how Emeh was eventually arrested, would be disclosed later.