BREAKING: Willie Obiano arrested by EFCC

Willie Obiano, the immediate-past governor of Anambra State, has been arrested on corruption charges by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Mr Obiano was apprehended at the Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Lagos as he was prepared to board a flight to Houston, Texas, according to sources at the commission who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to speak to the press on the case.

The arrest was reported to have occurred around 8.30 p.m. on Thursday.

Mr Obiano had been on the EFCC’s list for some time, according to an EFCC source.

“The EFCC arrested ex-governor Obiano of Anambra State today, March 17, 2022. “A source told reporters that the former governor, who was on the Commission’s watchlist, was arrested at the Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Lagos at approximately 8.30pm as he prepared to catch an aircraft to Houston, USA.”

The fallout from Mr Obiano’s wife, Ebelechukwu, being slapped by Bianca Ojukwu, widow of late Biafra leader Odumegwu Ojukwu, at the inauguration ceremony of the new governor of Anambra State, had yet to subside at the time of the arrest.

Charles Soludo, a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), was sworn in as the state’s new governor on Thursday.

Although the specifics of the EFCC’s claims against Mr Obiano were not immediately available on Thursday, it should be noted that the former governor has been on the commission’s watch list since last year.