Emefiele to Forfeit $2.045m, Seven Landed Properties, Shares

A Lagos Federal High Court has ordered the interim forfeiture of a cash sum of $2.045 million, linked to the embattled former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele. The trial Judge, Justice Akintayo Aluko, also ordered interim forfeiture of the seven landed properties  linked to the former CBN Governor.

The properties are listed as follows: “two fully detached duplexes of identical structures, lying being and situated at No. 17b Hakeem Odumosu Street, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos; an undeveloped/bare land, measuring 1919.592 sqm with Survey Plan No. DS/LS/340 LYING, being and situate at Oyinkan Abayomi Drive (formerly Queens Drive), Ikoyi, Lagos; a bungalow lying, being and situate at No. 65A, Oyinkan Abayomi Drive (formerly Queens Drive), Ikoyi, Lagos; four bedroom duplex lying, being and situate at 12A Probyn Road, Ikoyi; Industrial complex under construction on 22-plots of land, lying, being and situate in Agbor, Delta State; 8 units of undetached apartments on a plot measuring 2457.60 sqm of land  lying, being and situate at No. 8Am Adekunle Lawal Road, Ikoyi, and a full duplex together with all its appurtenances on a plot of land measuring 2217.87 sqm lying, being and situate at 2A, Bank Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Justice Aluko further ordered the interim forfeiture of 2 shares share certificates of Queensdorf Global Fund Limited Trust.

The Judge made the interim forfeiture orders, after taking an application for the orders in a suit marked FHC/L/MISC/500/24, which was filed and moved by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Lawyer, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, who led Chineye C. Okezie and Zeenat Atiku Bala.

EFCC’s  Lawyer, Oyedepo, SAN, in urging the court, said the money and other items sought to be forfeited are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities. Oyedepo also added that the orders sought are pursuant to Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act No. 14, 2006, Section 44 (2)(B) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the court’s inherent jurisdiction. He also informed the court that the motion ex-parte is supported by an affidavit deposed to by one Idi Musa, an Investigator attached to the Lagos office of the EFCC.

Parts of the deponent’s averments in the affidavit read: “that I am one of the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission assigned to investigate the damning intelligence report received by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in respect of monumental fraudulent activities perpetrated by some senior officers of the Central Bank of Nigeria through which huge sums of money were fraudulently converted and transferred for personal use.

“That the Commission whilst investigating the alleged monumental fraud carried out by the immediate past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and his Cronies traced and discovered several properties reasonably suspected to have been acquired and or developed with proceeds of unlawful activities.

“That the said properties particularised in Schedules ‘A’ and ‘B’ herein, having been reasonably suspected to have been acquired/developed with proceeds of unlawful activities are now sought to be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria in the interim’’, amongst others.”

Justice Aluko after listening to Oyedepo, SAN’s submission, reading through all the processes filed and the plethora of legal authorities cited, granted the interim forfeiture of the money, the share certificates, and the landed properties.

The Judge also directed the EFCC to publish the interim forfeiture order in a national newspaper, which could be The Nation, Punch, and the Guardian, to enable anyone interested in the properties to appear before the Court and show cause within 14 days, why the final order of forfeiture of the said properties should not be made in favour of the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Further hearing of the matter has been adjourned to September 5, 2024.