Niger: interior minister’s spouse implicated in a major visa trafficking scheme
A highly sensitive dossier has emerged, drawing in Niger’s Interior Minister, the influential General Mohamed Toumba. As a pivotal figure within the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP) since the coup d’état on July 26, 2023, the senior officer now finds his reputation indirectly affected by an illicit scheme involving the sale of residency permits between West Africa and Europe, in which his spouse is directly implicated.
A clandestine network targeting the Schengen Area
Previously undisclosed within Niamey’s diplomatic and security circles, the investigation centers on the Spanish Embassy in Niger. The wife of General Toumba, a former associate of this chancellery, is suspected of leveraging her past position to orchestrate an extensive network for illicitly obtaining Schengen visas.
The operational methodology of this network, which has since been dismantled, relied on exceptionally lucrative clandestine services:
- Fees: Charges ranged between 2 and 5 million CFA francs (approximately 3,048 to 7,622 euros) per visa.
- Process: Applicants were not required to appear before consular services, with all procedures handled remotely.
- Targeted Clientele: The system proved particularly appealing to Malian nationals. These individuals benefited from an illegal waiver of the mandatory residency card verification in Niger, a document typically required to bypass the Spanish Embassy in Bamako. Upon their arrival in Madrid, local facilitators immediately provided support.
Initial findings from the investigation indicate that approximately 1,500 Malians may have traveled to Europe through this illicit channel.
Financial ramifications and significant arrests
Investigations conducted by the Directorate General of Documentation and External Security (DGDSE), under the leadership of Lieutenant-Colonel Souleymane Balla-Arabé, have uncovered suspicious financial flows designed to launder funds across the region, notably directed towards Senegal.
Agents from the external intelligence service have carried out several crucial arrests:
- Maty Cissokho Toumba, the spouse of the Interior Minister, was questioned by investigators.
- Samsoudine Idrissa, identified as the network’s logistical coordinator and a close associate of General Toumba, was apprehended by the DGDSE immediately after leaving the minister’s residence.
- Another alleged accomplice, reportedly recruited by the minister’s wife shortly before her departure from the Spanish Embassy a year ago, is also under judicial scrutiny.
Escalating political tensions at the highest levels of government
The initiation of this procedure, managed by intelligence services (DGDSE) rather than conventional judicial police, has intensified internal rivalries within the ruling military junta. This scandal further exacerbates the climate of mistrust within the transitional regime.
The President of the Transition, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, is increasingly observed to be consolidating power among members of his own Haoussa community, often at the expense of other high-ranking officials from the Zarma community. This affair thus directly weakens the most prominent Zarma figures within the regime, chief among them General Mohamed Toumba (number three in the junta) and General Salifou Modi, the Minister of Defense, who is highly respected within military ranks.
