The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has declared socialite Aisha Achimugu, Governor Sanwo-Olu Babajide’s ally, wanted for alleged money laundering.

“The public is hereby notified that Aisha Sulaiman Achimugu is wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in an alleged case of criminal conspiracy and money laundering,” the commission said in a notice on Thursday.

This declaration of a manhunt for Ms Achimugu comes two days after Peoples Gazette exclusively reported that anti-graft agents discovered Mr Sanwo-Olu, through Ms Achimugu, allegedly piped public funds to Peter Obi of the Labour Party and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party.

The Gazette learnt an investigation was also expanded into how Ms Achimugu might have funded Messrs Obi and Abubakar around the 2023 elections after she was identified as a key smurfer for Mr Sanwo-Olu.

“The agents didn’t stop at identifying how the woman was helping the Lagos governor move money abroad; they also tried to understand how she might have moved money within the country,” an official said. “That was how they found she delivered some money to two opposition leaders after the presidential election.”

The anti-graft agency announced it had obtained a warrant of arrest and prepared to declare Ms Achimugu wanted over alleged money laundering and investment scam.

It was learnt that Ms Achimugu, an associate of Mr Sanwo-Olu, allegedly fled Nigeria after she was scheduled to meet with the anti-graft agency for investigation over the allegations.

Officials also noted Ms Achimugu might have distributed the money after the election as part of a compromise to aid Mr Sanwo-Olu’s reelection after Mr Tinubu’s sensational defeat in Lagos.

The media aide to Mr Atiku, Paul Ibe, who issued the statement, pushed back against The Gazette’s report that Mr Sanwo-Olu gave money to the former vice-president for his 2023 presidential election campaign.

The Gazette’s story, which cited sources from the presidency, was based on an intelligence briefing received by the president recently.

Mr Ibe, who has served for years as Mr Abubakar’s chief spokesman, repeatedly sidestepped all efforts by The Gazette to get his comment before the story was published on Thursday Wednesday morning.

But in a statement issued a day after the publication, Mr Ibe sought to absolve his principal, describing the controversy as part of a purported plot by the president to undermine Mr Abubakar and other opposition figures ahead of the 2027 general elections.