The immediate past Group Managing Director (GMD) of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, has honored the invitation of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following an ongoing investigation.

A top source within the EFCC, who spoke with The Guardian, pleaded anonymity as he was not authorized to speak, and disclosed this on Wednesday.

The source confirmed that Kyari was invited, and he is currently in the custody of the anti-graft agency.

The development comes days after the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the temporary freezing of four Jaiz Bank accounts linked to Mele Kyari, the immediate past Group Managing Director (GMD) of NNPCL, over allegations of fraud.

Justice Emeka Nwite made the order after the EFCC’s lawyer, Ogechi Ujam, moved an ex parte motion to that effect.

This development follows the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, chaired by Aliyu Wadada, raising the alarm about alleged discrepancies involving trillions of naira in the audited financial statements of NNPCL.

The Committee described the revelations as mind-boggling and worrisome, emphasizing that the concerns stem from its analysis of NNPCL’s audited financial statements from 2017 to 2023.

The committee immediately handed over a list of 11 queries to the NNPCL finance team with a one-week deadline for response.

The development comes months after President Bola Tinubu approved the reconstitution of the NNPCL board, removing the chairman, Chief Pius Akinyelure, and the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari.

The restructuring affected all other board members appointed alongside Akinyelure and Kyari in November 2023.