The suspects — identified as Ayuba Yakubu of the Nigeria Police, Murtala Inuwa of the DSS, Najeeb Murtala of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), and aviation security officers Musa Adamu and Salihu Victor — were apprehended following a joint investigation involving the DSS, NIS, Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), and the Federal Ministry of Aviation.
According to authorities, the five operatives confessed to accepting bribes in exchange for granting unauthorized access to restricted airport zones, effectively undermining a lawful security operation. They have since been transferred to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for prosecution. Separately, NIS and NCS officers who did not accept bribes but allegedly misused their authority to enable restricted access are expected to face internal disciplinary proceedings.
El-Rufai later confirmed in a television interview that it was the ICPC that had directed the DSS to detain him upon his return. He is currently in ICPC custody after he was initially detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following a voluntary appearance. Investigators are probing alleged financial misconduct during his eight-year tenure as Kaduna governor from 2015 to 2023.
