The Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the permanent forfeiture of properties valued at over N11.14 billion and N1.04 billion belonging to former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, to the Federal Government.
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke issued the final forfeiture order following a motion filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), represented by counsel Chineye Okezie, on Friday.
The judge stated, “Having carefully considered the application and submission of counsel, it is hereby ordered as follows: – that a final forfeiture order of this honourable court is hereby made forfeiting to the Federal Government of Nigeria, properties contained in Schedule A herein which were traced and reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.”
The properties in question include shops and apartments located in Cadastral Zones Maitama and Wuse. Additionally, properties listed in Schedule B, valued at N1.04 billion, were also forfeited. These included lands and apartments paid for on behalf of an individual named Oluwaseun.
According to an affidavit, Obayemi Oluwaseun Teben and Akomolafe Adebayo, alongside Olubunmi Makinde, were implicated in using their positions as CBN staff to secure foreign exchange allocations for companies in exchange for kickbacks.
“OLUBUNMI MAKINDE is the link between OBAYEMI OLUWASEUN TEBEN and AKOMOLAFE ADEBAYO and the various companies applying for the purchase of foreign exchange,” the affidavit stated.
On June 5, 2024, Justice Aneke granted an interim forfeiture order following a motion by EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, who asserted that Emefiele was suspected of acquiring the properties using fraudulent proceeds.
The accomplices in the alleged fraud include current and former CBN staff members.
The judge directed the EFCC to publish the interim forfeiture order in a national newspaper to invite any interested parties to show cause why the properties should not be permanently forfeited. A subsequent hearing for the motion for final forfeiture was scheduled.
On June 21, no parties appeared in court to contest the interim order, allowing Chineye Okezie to proceed with the motion for permanent forfeiture.
After reviewing a 41-paragraph affidavit by EFCC Investigating Officer Michael John Idoko, along with 19 attached exhibits and a written address, Justice Aneke granted the application for permanent forfeiture. The properties were listed in two schedules, A and B.
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