The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of 20 landed properties valued at over N3.07 billion belonging to a top military officer to the Federal Government.
This followed an application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) via its counsels, Cosmos Ugwu and Musa Isah.
In a statement issued on Monday by EFCC spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, the properties were controlled through proxies, including late General Aminu Maude and companies such as Atlasfield Integrated Services Nigeria Limited, Marhaba Events Place, Aflac Plastics, and Atlasfield Gas Plant Limited.
In the absence of any objection, Justice Nkeonye Maha ordered the final forfeiture of the properties.
The forfeited properties are located in different parts of Kano, Katsina, Calabar and Kaduna. They included fuel stations, event centers, plazas, block industries, a truck assembly plant, a polythene production factory, and a table water factory.
EFCC listed the affected properties as an undeveloped plot located at Rake, Adjacent to Dara Orthopedic Hospital, Kano valued at N300 million; 117 hectares of land located at Adiabo, Oduapani LG covered by Certificated of Occupancy No. OD/23/2011 dated 21/2/ 2011 in Calabar, Cross River State, valued at N386 million; truck assembly plant at Ring Road, adjacent to AA Affa Filling Station, Kano, valued at N206 million and Marhaba Event Centre, Guda Abdulahi Road Farm Centre, Kano valued at N250 million.
In May 2020, the court had ordered the interim forfeiture of the properties following an ex parte application by the commission, alleging that the assets were proceeds of unlawful activities.
The court, having considered the application vis-a-vis Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006, more particularly sub-sections 1 and 3 thereof, granted the prayers of the Commission for interim forfeiture and directed the publication of notices, alerting anyone with interest in the properties to show cause why they should not be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
