The Enugu State Police Command has arrested a 74-year-old Islamic scholar, Alhaji Musa Ani, along with the Sarikin Hausawa of Enugu, Alhaji Suleiman Haruna Sule, over an alleged N100 million fraud, law enforcement sources report.

Police operatives took Ani, who is Director of the Islamic Centre in Uwani, Enugu, into custody on Friday after a petition accusing him of misappropriating N100 million was submitted by a tenant, Alhaji Ezeani Ibrahim, who owns shops within the Centre’s premises. Investigators allege the funds were diverted from the centre’s accounts.

Sule, who serves as Chairman of the United Inter-Community Traditional Council of Chiefs, was reportedly detained on Saturday when he visited the State Criminal Investigation Department to seek bail for Ani, police said. Both men were taken into custody for questioning as part of efforts to determine the facts of the alleged financial misconduct.

The arrests have sparked reactions from sections of the Muslim community in Enugu, with some leaders dismissing the allegation as baseless and rooted in internal disagreements within the mosque’s leadership. They argue that the alleged amount is unusually large for the Centre, which they say relies primarily on donations and offerings from worshippers.

The Civil Rights Realisation and Advancement Network (CRRAN) condemned the detention of the two elderly men, describing it as an embarrassment to the Muslim community and suggesting that disputes of this nature should be settled internally by mosque authorities rather than through police action. The group also accused the police of compromising professional standards by arresting Sule merely because his name appeared on the petition.

CRRAN has appealed for the immediate release of the cleric and chief to allow them to reunite with their families and continue their religious obligations, especially as the period of Ramadan approaches.

As of the time of reporting, the Enugu State Police Public Relations Officer had not responded to requests for further comment on the investigation or the next legal steps for the suspects.