The Federal High Court, Abuja, on Monday granted a final forfeiture order against several assets and funds following the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s advanced fee fraud allegations.
The affected assets include Galaxy Hospital (Borno), 14.8 hectares of land, several plots of land in Borno, Niger, FCT, and N335 million.
Justice Emeka Nwite granted the order in a motion on notice filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), marked FHC/ABJ/1058/2024.
The motion was brought pursuant to Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
According to the EFCC affidavit in support, deposed to by Tahiru Ahmed, the forfeiture motion falls within the inherent jurisdiction of the court.
The official stated that on the 13th of August, 2024, the Court made an order for interim forfeiture of the properties listed in the schedule to the application.
Naijaonpoint reports that the orders made by the Court also directed the EFCC to publish the properties in any national daily and on the EFCC website, inviting all persons or bodies who may have an interest in the said properties to show cause why they should not be finally forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“The said orders of the Court were complied with, and the publication was made in Punch newspapers on the 4th of September, 2024,” the official stated.
The official claimed that since the publication of the interim order of forfeiture, nobody has come forward to show interest in the said properties.
He argued that it is in the interest of justice to grant the final forfeiture application, “as no person will be prejudiced in any way.”
At the resumed court session on Monday, EFCC counsel Fadila Yusuf urged the court to grant a final order, forfeiting to the Federal Government of Nigeria the properties mentioned in Schedules 1 and 2 attached to the motion.
Consequently, the judge granted the application as prayed.