Oba Otudeko, a former chairman of the First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) and Honeywell Group chairman has suddenly left Nigeria.
His departure comes in the wake of his imminent arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a 13-count charge of alleged fraud.
TheCable reports that the businessman left the country via one of the land borders.
According to security sources, he was dropped off at the Nigeria-Benin border on Thursday evening by a family member.
When he was contacted, his phone number was switched off. Messages sent to his WhatsApp, however, delivered — but there was no response.
Obafemi Otudeko, his son, did not respond to calls and messages when contacted for comments on his father’s whereabouts and destination.
Earlier on Thursday, the EFCC filed charges against Otudeko and three others at the federal high court in Lagos for allegedly obtaining a N30 billion loan under false pretences. The anti-graft agency said the defendants would be arraigned on Monday.
The three other defendants are Stephen Olabisi Onasanya, a former group managing director of FBN; Soji Akintayo, an ex-board member of Honeywell Flour Mills plc; and Anchorage Limited, a company linked to Otudeko.
In the charge sheet, the EFCC accused Otudeko and the other defendants of obtaining tranches of loans—N12.3 billion, N5.2 billion, N6.2 billion, N6.1 billion, and N1.5 billion—from First Bank under the pretence that the funds were obtained by some firms.
The anti-graft agency said the credit facilities were obtained between 2013 and 2014.
Meanwhile, a family sources say Oba Otudeko, the Odogbolu, Ogun State born businessman did not run away from Nigeria, rather left the country on a medical trip.
Although the family sources said he did not leave Nigeria through land borders, they were silent on the airport through which the octogenarian exited the country.
“As an elderly citizen, Dr. Oba Otudeko prioritises his health above all. He is routinely out of the country to access health care and attend to other personal matters. This is not a recent development as Oba Otudeko has divided his time between his abodes in Nigeria and the UK for the last four decades,” the family source said.
“This trip is in line with his usual travel plans and was not a surprise.”
The family asked the public to respect Otudeko’s privacy, saying he does not need to share his long-term itinerary with third parties without cause.
The family said Otudeko remains committed to fully addressing all matters “appropriately and transparently if and when necessary”.
