The Economic Financial Crimes Commission on Saturday posted fake news, saying a former minister of Petroleum Diezani Alison-Madueke admitted stealing $9 billion and begging President Bola Tinubu for clemency to return to Nigeria.

The anti-graft agency in a post on its official Instagram page on Saturday shared the fake news which went viral on social media.

About two hours and some change later, however, the anti-graft agency pulled down the fake story without explaining what informed its action or apologising for misleading the public.

Spokesperson for the EFCC, Dele Oyewale, said that he was not aware of the fake news shared on the agency Instagram page when Peoples Gazette drew his attention to the report.

“There is nothing like that. Whatever is not signed by me is not from us,” Mr Oyewale said.

Asked to explain how the fake report made it to the agency’s Instagram page without his knowledge, Mr Oyewale said “I didn’t send anything. That’s what I will tell you.”

The EFCC comes as the latest of government agency to be caught spreading fake news in recent times. The EU election observer report had listed the All Progressives Congress members such as Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation, among top fake news peddlers during the 2023 presidential election.

Mrs Alison-Madueke, 63, who was petroleum minister between 2010 and 2015, under former President Goodluck Jonathan’s government, is currently facing trial in the United Kingdom over bribery allegations.

In October, she appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court in the UK over an alleged £100,000 bribery offence. She was granted bail by a UK court upon meeting her bail conditions which included the sum of £70,000 surety.

Earlier, the anti-graft agency said that though Mrs Alison-Madueke was being tried over bribery allegations in the UK, she would be tried separately over money laundering charges in Nigeria.