Police Top Ghost Worker List: ICPC Busts Massive N942m Payroll Scam Across Federal MDAs
Abuja, Nigeria - July 22, 2026 - In a damning revelation that underscores persistent vulnerabilities in Nigeria’s public service payroll system, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered 908 suspected ghost workers across more than 50 federal ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
The anti-graft body recovered approximately ₦942 million in fraudulent salary payments, dealing a significant blow to what appears to be a well-entrenched scheme siphoning public funds.
ICPC Chairman Musa Adamu Aliyu (SAN) disclosed the findings during an interview, tracing the investigation back to 2024 irregularities spotted in pension payments.
What began as a targeted probe expanded into a comprehensive audit of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), exposing fictitious identities created for non-existent personnel whose salaries flowed into private accounts for years.
The Nigeria Police Force topped the list with a staggering 570 suspected fake workers — a figure that has sparked outrage given the force’s frontline role in national security. Other high-profile offenders include the National Water Resources Authority (80), Federal Ministry of Works (56), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (24), and Ministry of Defence (19). Ministries of Power and Industry,
Trade and Investment each had 17, while Health recorded 15 and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service had 12.
Aliyu painted a troubling picture of insider abuse: senior officials allegedly inserting relatives and cronies onto payrolls. In one brazen case, a suspect reportedly added his wife, son, and mother-in-law while diverting salaries from 12 other phantom employees.
Account names often mismatched purported workers, with some receiving multiple payments simultaneously.
The probe, which involved collaboration with the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, built on earlier 2023 findings and a presidentially approved audit.
ICPC froze accounts via Post No Debit orders, leading to a court-ordered final forfeiture of nearly ₦942 million.
Names of over 900 suspected beneficiaries were publicly published in March 2026 to invite legitimate claims.
This latest scandal revives long-standing concerns about ghost workers draining Nigeria’s public coffers — a problem successive administrations have grappled with despite IPPIS reforms.
The scale here, involving universities, the Accountant-General’s office, and core ministries, points to collusion at multiple levels and weaknesses in verification processes.
For ordinary Nigerians already strained by economic hardships, the news lands as a bitter reminder: while civil servants and security personnel go months without timely payments or adequate funding, fraudsters have allegedly been living large on fabricated identities.
The Police’s dominance in the list raises uncomfortable questions about internal accountability in an institution tasked with upholding the law.
ICPC’s success in recovery and forfeiture signals determination, but experts and citizens alike are calling for prosecutions, not just financial clawbacks.
Without arrests and transparent trials, such exposés risk becoming routine headlines rather than catalysts for reform.
As investigations continue into remaining MDAs, this case offers a pivotal moment for the Tinubu administration to strengthen digital safeguards, enforce stricter audits, and restore public trust.
Nigeria’s fight against corruption demands more than discoveries — it requires sustained, visible justice that deters the next generation of payroll manipulators.
The ₦942 million returned is a victory, but the true measure of success will be whether systems are fortified to prevent recurrence.
For now, the ghost workers exposé lays bare a haunting reality: in Nigeria’s bureaucracy, some salaries flow to those who exist only on paper.
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