EFCC frees PDP chieftain on bail

Secondus was released at about 8:30pm on Wednesday, March 2, 2016, The Nation reports.

His passports were however seized and he was required to produce two sureties with a N750 million bond each.

“The PDP Deputy National Chairman has been released but under extremely stringent conditions,” Secondus’ lawyer, Emeka Etiaba (SAN), said.

“For a man whose alleged offence has not been proven, he does not deserve stringent bail terms,” he added.

Secondus was arrested on February 24 after it was alleged that he received vehicles worth N310 million from a business associate of ex-Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

The PDP chieftain is said to have confessed to receiving the vehicles and offered to return them.

The EFCC however rejected the offer and urged him to refund the money instead.

“The Deputy National Chairman of PDP has admitted that he collected the 23 vehicles from the oil baron. At a point during the interrogation, Secondus voluntarily offered to return all the vehicles to EFCC. He said he was willing to retrieve the vehicles from the beneficiaries,” a source earlier told The Nation.

“The EFCC has asked Secondus to refund N310million cash being the worth of the vehicles. We are actually not interested in the vehicles, as the value would have depreciated. Oil revenue was used to buy these vehicles and we are demanding nothing but the N310million,” the source added.

Meanwhile, the PDP has accused Federal Government of targeting its members in the ongoing anti-corruption war.