EFCC reissues summons to Timipre Sylva over an alleged $14.86m fraud case, declaring the former Bayelsa governor wanted

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has issued a fresh summons to former Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva over an alleged $14.86 million fraud case, renewing its demand that the former minister appear before investigators.

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EFCC spokesman Dele Oyewale disclosed the development on Monday, shortly after Sylva criticised the commission’s conduct and accused it of operating more like an organ of the All Progressives Congress than a neutral state institution.

Oyewale said Sylva remained wanted by the anti-graft agency and should make himself available.

“He has been declared wanted; he should make himself available to the commission,” Oyewale said.

The latest development revives an investigation that has followed Sylva since the EFCC first declared him wanted in November 2025.

The commission had linked the former governor to an alleged case of conspiracy and dishonest conversion involving $14,859,257.

The allegations against Sylva come amid a broader and increasingly complex legal and political dispute surrounding the former petroleum minister.

Sylva, who served as Bayelsa governor from 2007 to 2012 and later became Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, has rejected the suggestion that the EFCC is acting independently of political considerations.

His latest criticism of the commission adds a political dimension to an investigation that the EFCC maintains is based on alleged financial crimes.

The former governor’s political relationship with President Bola Tinubu’s administration has also deteriorated in recent months.

Sylva resigned from the APC after being linked to an alleged plot against the Tinubu administration, although the political circumstances surrounding his departure remain contested.

Separately, Sylva is listed as a defendant in a 13-count federal charge connected to allegations including treason, terrorism-related offences, conspiracy and money laundering arising from the alleged plot.

Court proceedings and allegations connected to that case are distinct from the EFCC’s investigation into the alleged $14.86 million financial crime.

Investigators have reportedly alleged that Sylva was a principal financier of the alleged plot and that about N785 million was contributed through Purple Waves Limited, an Abuja-based company.

The allegations have not been established as fact in court, and Sylva remains entitled to the presumption of innocence.

The former governor was also reported to have left Nigeria after the alleged plot became public.

His planned return was subsequently suspended after reports of a raid on his Abuja residence, during which some of his associates were arrested.

The renewed EFCC summons therefore places Sylva under fresh pressure to address the commission’s allegations.

For the anti-graft agency, the latest demand is part of its stated position that suspects under investigation must appear before investigators regardless of political status.

For Sylva, however, the matter comes against the backdrop of his wider dispute with the Federal Government and the APC, raising questions about the intersection of criminal investigations and Nigeria’s often contentious political environment.

Until the allegations are determined through due legal process, the claims against the former governor remain allegations.

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The immediate question is whether Sylva will respond to the fresh summons and appear before the EFCC to address the financial crime allegations.