Court orders final forfeiture of N3.4bn, properties linked to ex-NNPCL official

A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of N3.4 billion and three properties linked to alleged fraud involving a former managing director of a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

The order followed a motion filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and argued by its counsel, Martha Babatunde.

The anti-graft agency told the court that the assets — including properties in Abuja and Lagos — were proceeds of unlawful activities connected to contracts under major power projects.

At the hearing, Babatunde informed the court that the commission had complied with an earlier directive to publish a notice inviting interested parties to show cause why the assets should not be forfeited.

“We filed a written address as our oral submission in urging this honourable court to grant our application, the motion having been unopposed,” she said.

Counsel to the defendant, Maryam Abba, also told the court that her client had filed an affidavit of non-contestation, indicating no objection to the forfeiture.

In her ruling, the judge noted that the affected party did not oppose the application.

“Consequently, I grant the order for final forfeiture of the properties and the funds attached to the motion to the Federal Government of Nigeria,” the court held.

The EFCC said the application was brought under the provisions of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud-Related Offences Act, describing the process as a non-conviction-based asset forfeiture.

An investigator with the commission stated in an affidavit that the case originated from a petition alleging conspiracy, bribery, kickbacks, and money laundering involving officials and contractors in the oil sector.