The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has handed over 1,452 beds and mattresses recovered from convicted cybercriminals to the Federal Ministry of Education for distribution to Federal Unity Colleges across the country, in a move aimed at ensuring proceeds of crime are converted into public assets that directly benefit Nigerian students.
The items, comprising 501 double-step bunk beds, 939 mattresses and 12 wooden beds with mattresses, were recovered during a major anti-cybercrime operation code-named Operation Eagle Flush and forfeited to the Federal Government in accordance with the Proceeds of Crime Act.
The handover ceremony took place on Tuesday at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja, where Maruf Alausa, Minister of Education, received the items on behalf of the ministry.
Speaking at the event, Ola Olukoyede, EFCC Chairman, said the restitution initiative reflects the Commission’s determination to ensure that assets recovered from criminal activities are transparently deployed for projects that improve the lives of Nigerians, particularly children and young people.
According to him, the beds and mattresses were recovered following Operation Eagle Flush, which led to the arrest and investigation of 792 suspects, including 193 foreign nationals involved in cybercrime.
Olukoyede disclosed that the suspects were subsequently convicted, while the foreign nationals were deported to their respective countries after serving the legal process.
He explained that the decision to transfer the recovered items to the Ministry of Education was approved by President Bola Tinubu in line with the Federal Government’s commitment to improving learning conditions in schools.
“The decision to hand over these facilities to the Federal Ministry of Education is in line with the Federal Government’s determination to improve the quality of education in Nigeria,” he said.
Olukoyede noted that children and youths bear the greatest consequences of corruption through poor infrastructure, inadequate facilities and limited opportunities.
He stressed that they should naturally become the primary beneficiaries whenever proceeds of crime are recovered.
“Children and the youth are the greatest victims of corruption and should naturally be the first beneficiaries of the proceeds of such crime,” he said.
The EFCC chairman added that the latest donation forms part of the Commission’s asset restitution programme under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
He recalled that the Commission had earlier transferred N50 billion in recovered funds to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund to support students’ access to higher education and facilitated the conversion of Nok University into the Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia, Kaduna State.
According to him, such interventions demonstrate that recovered assets can be transformed into opportunities that promote education, social development and national progress.
Olukoyede assured that the Commission would continue to intensify the recovery of illicit assets while ensuring that all recoveries are managed transparently and deployed for the collective benefit of Nigerians.
Receiving the items, Alausa said the recovered beds and mattresses would be distributed to Unity Colleges across the country to improve students’ welfare.
He described the education sector as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the EFCC’s asset recovery efforts under Olukoyede’s leadership.
Alausa also praised the EFCC chairman, saying he had raised the Commission’s operational standards and strengthened public confidence in its activities.
“Chairman, I commend you for bringing the highest level of standards to the EFCC,” the minister said.
He further commended Tinubu for appointing Olukoyede to lead the anti-graft agency, describing the President as someone with an exceptional ability to identify capable individuals for critical national assignments.
According to the minister, the EFCC under Olukoyede has remained focused on professionalism and has not been used as an instrument to intimidate or persecute innocent citizens.
“And it’s not an EFCC the President will use to victimise and harass innocent citizens. We have never seen that in the last three years. We have an EFCC that is operating within the confines of the rule of law,” he said.
Alausa also lauded the Commission for shifting from a largely reactive approach to corruption to one that proactively identifies systemic weaknesses, particularly in public procurement, which he described as one of the country’s biggest corruption vulnerabilities.
He said the Commission’s preventive approach has helped reduce opportunities for corruption before public funds are lost.
The minister expressed optimism that the recovered facilities would significantly improve accommodation standards in federal secondary schools while reinforcing the government’s commitment to ensuring that proceeds of crime are redirected towards national development rather than private enrichment.
