The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has declared former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, wanted over allegations of conspiracy and the dishonest conversion of $14.8 million linked to a refinery project.
According to a public notice issued on Monday by EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale, the funds in question were provided by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) for the Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited project.
The commission stated that Sylva, 61, from Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, is wanted in connection with the alleged diversion of part of the funds meant for constructing the refinery.
“The public is hereby notified that Timipre Sylva, a former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and former Governor of Bayelsa State, is wanted by the EFCC over an alleged case of conspiracy and dishonest conversion of $14,859,257. The money was part of the investment by NCDMB in Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited for the construction of a refinery,” the notice read.
The EFCC further disclosed that it obtained a Federal High Court warrant in Lagos on November 6, 2025, authorizing Sylva’s arrest. The order, granted by Justice D.I. Dipeolu, empowers the EFCC or any law enforcement officer to arrest the former minister and bring him in for questioning.
Anyone with useful information about his whereabouts has been urged to contact the EFCC through its offices across the country, its official email ([email protected]), hotline 08093322644, or the nearest police station.
This development comes less than a month after the House of Representatives launched an investigation into the alleged mismanagement of $35 million invested by the NCDMB in the same Atlantic Refinery project, a facility that reportedly never materialized.
The motion, moved by lawmaker Billy Osawaru, questioned why such a significant investment had yielded no results after five years, prompting the House to direct its committees on Midstream, Downstream, and Legislative Compliance to probe the matter and submit a report within four weeks.
In a related controversy, Sylva’s name recently surfaced in another high-profile incident when military operatives raided his Abuja residence on October 25, allegedly in connection with an attempted coup. During the operation, his younger brother and aide, Paga Sylva, along with his driver, were arrested.
Sylva, who was reportedly outside the country at the time, has denied any involvement in the alleged coup through his media aide, Julius Bokoru, who also condemned the raid and the damage caused to the property.
Sylva, a former Bayelsa State governor and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has not yet responded publicly to the EFCC’s latest declaration.
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