N100m transfer to Egbetokun’s son was an error, funds have been reversed —NPF

The Nigeria Police Force moved on Monday to contain a brewing reputational crisis surrounding its outgoing chief, insisting that a transfer of N100 million into the personal bank account of the inspector-general of police’s son was made in error and that the funds were promptly returned.

The clarification came after an online report — attributed to activist and publisher Omoyele Sowore — alleged that Victor Egbetokun, son of outgoing Inspector-General Kayode Egbetokun, had received N100 million from the Anambra State Government’s security vote account, a claim that quickly circulated on social media and raised questions about financial propriety at the top of the country’s police hierarchy.

Benjamin Hundeyin, the force’s spokesman, addressed the matter directly on Channels Television’s Politics Today, saying he contacted Victor Egbetokun immediately after the allegation surfaced and received an explanation that the deposit was unsolicited and had been reversed as soon as it was noticed.

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“You could remember when he said N100 million was paid into the account of the son of the IGP,” Hundeyin said, referring to Sowore. “I called the son of the IGP immediately to know what was going on, and he explained. He said he saw N100 million in his account, and he told his accounts officer to reverse the money immediately, which he did.”

Hundeyin added that Victor Egbetokun subsequently printed his bank statement to demonstrate that the transfer had been reversed, and that the young man had since closed the account in question. He also said Victor had filed a petition with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), calling for a formal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the transfer.

The police described the incident as a mistaken transaction, with the funds returned to the Anambra State Government’s account shortly after they were detected.

The explanation, whilst detailed, is unlikely to fully extinguish public scepticism. The involvement of a state government’s security vote account — a notoriously opaque fund with limited public oversight — in a transfer of that magnitude to a private individual, even if ultimately reversed, raises questions that a press statement alone may struggle to answer. The EFCC petition, if pursued vigorously, may offer a more definitive account of how the transfer was initiated in the first place.