By Oyinkansola Aremu
Military investigators probing an alleged plot to overthrow President Bola Tinubu have arrested and are interrogating the Managing Director of a federal agency in the South-South region over suspicious financial transactions linked to the alleged coup funding.
According to two senior intelligence officers, the agency head allegedly transferred a substantial amount of money to former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, who is being investigated as one of the alleged financiers of the purported plot to topple the government.
“The MD transferred a huge sum of money to Sylva. Investigators are working on the theory that the fund was connected to the coup. He is presently answering questions about what the money was meant for,” one of the sources said.
On Saturday, military operatives reportedly raided Sylva’s Abuja residence, arresting his younger brother, Paga Sylva—who serves as his Special Assistant on Domestic Affairs—along with his driver.
The former Bayelsa State governor, who is also a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, was said to be outside the country at the time of the operation.
Sources familiar with the development said that Sylva had been planning to return to Nigeria but suspended the trip after learning that the alleged coup plotters had been apprehended.
The investigation, which has sparked fresh political tension, is part of ongoing efforts by military intelligence to unravel the scope and sponsorship of the alleged plot to destabilize the Tinubu administration.
