The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has dismissed a security officer accused of helping Aichatou Assabe El-Rufai, one of the wives of former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, gain unauthorised access to him while he was in custody.
The officer, identified as Daniel Stephen, was attached to the commission’s internal security team and was allegedly captured on CCTV assisting Assabe to enter the ICPC premises on July 5, 2026, outside the approved visitor access procedure.
According to TheCable, Stephen admitted his involvement in a handwritten statement submitted to an investigation panel, saying he helped El-Rufai’s wife gain access to her husband “through the back door”.
Stephen reportedly drove Assabe into the commission’s premises, took her through a rear entrance and escorted her upstairs to the section where El-Rufai was being held.
An ICPC officer was quoted as saying that Stephen’s handwritten account indicated that he switched off the light at one point before they entered the room where El-Rufai was being held.
“Mrs El-Rufai handed her husband a document, picked up a black purse and spoke with him in Hausa about a court matter. The visit lasted about 15 minutes,” the officer reportedly said.
According to the account, Stephen subsequently escorted Assabe out through the same rear entrance and drove her away from the commission’s premises.
Stephen reportedly told the panel that he was aware the visit did not comply with the ICPC’s established security procedures.
He explained that visitors to the commission’s premises were required to have their details recorded at the gate and obtain clearance from the head of the security unit before gaining access to the facility.
The security officer also admitted that his actions amounted to a breach of the commission’s rules.
“I agree that I am wrong and breached commission procedure,” he wrote, adding that he made the statement voluntarily and without coercion or duress.
ICPC sources reportedly further claimed that Stephen’s statement indicated that his involvement in facilitating unauthorised access to El-Rufai’s detention area may have extended beyond the July 5 incident.
According to the account, Stephen recalled an earlier occasion when he helped escort Assabe further into the facility while officials were still confirming her identity.
He allegedly said that after assisting her, a man who identified himself as El-Rufai’s blood brother approached him and that he also agreed to help the man gain access to the facility through the rear entrance.
El-Rufai has been in ICPC custody since February 19, following his release by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He is facing money laundering and conversion of public property charges, which he has denied.
