The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned three officials of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) before a Lagos High Court on allegations of fraud involving about ₦2.04 billion, the anti‑graft agency said in a statement on Friday.

The defendants — Aliyu Ibrahim, Tunde Balogun and Esther Okafor — were charged with conspiracy, abuse of office and fraudulent conversion of funds belonging to the NRC between 2019 and 2024, the EFCC said. The alleged offences relate to false payments, inflated contract awards and diversion of public funds to personal accounts, according to the prosecution.

The charges were filed before Justice Olalekan Ojo of the Lagos State High Court (Igbosere Division) where the trio appeared. They pleaded not guilty to all counts when the indictments were read to them in open court.

The prosecutor, Mr Adetokunbo Fashola (SAN), told the court that evidence before the commission shows that the suspects allegedly approved and authorized fictitious contracts, routed funds into private bank accounts and created shell companies to launder the proceeds, causing the NRC to lose an estimated ₦2.04 billion.

Lawyers for the defendants asked for bail but the EFCC prosecutor urged the court to deny their application on the grounds that the offences are grave and carry the risk of flight, noting that the accused are alleged to have abused positions of trust entrusted to them by a federal agency.

Justice Ojo adjourned the matter until March 18, 2026 for the hearing of bail applications and commencement of trial, the EFCC statement said. During the adjournment the defendants will remain in EFCC custody, pending the court’s decision on their bail requests.

The EFCC has warned that public officers who handle government resources must be held accountable and vowed to pursue similar cases where public funds are allegedly diverted by officials without dutiful oversight.