Barring any last-minute changes, the federal government is set to arraign Mike Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) before the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on Monday, January 26, 2026, over alleged property fraud in London, United Kingdom.
The arraignment is scheduled to take place in Courtroom 4, according to a hearing notice sighted on Wednesday.
In the charge, Ozekhome is listed as the sole defendant, while the Federal Republic of Nigeria is named as the plaintiff.
The prosecution will be led by Osuobeni Akponimisingha, head of the high profile prosecution department of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
The hearing notice states that the case “will be transferred from the general cause list to the hearing paper for Monday, the 26th day of January, 2026, at 9:00 a.m.”
It further advises that any party seeking an adjournment must apply promptly and provide supporting evidence where the application is fact-based. Parties intending to enforce the attendance of witnesses are also required to give reasonable notice.
Ozekhome faces three counts in the charge filed by the ICPC on January 16, 2026.
The first count alleges that in August 2021, in London, Ozekhome directly received a property located at House 79, Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX, purportedly given to him by Mr. Shani Tali, knowing that the act constituted a felony. The offence is said to be contrary to Section 13 and punishable under Section 24 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
The second count alleges that, while acting as a legal practitioner and SAN, Ozekhome in August 2021 created a false Nigerian passport (No. A07535463) bearing the name of Mr. Shani Tali to support a fraudulent ownership claim over the London property. The offence is said to be contrary to Section 363 and punishable under Section 364 of the Penal Code, Laws of the FCT, Abuja.
The third count alleges that Ozekhome dishonestly used the same false passport to substantiate the ownership claim, knowing the document to be false, contrary to Section 366 and punishable under Section 364 of the Penal Code.
The case followed a petition submitted to the ICPC by the head of the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA), Mr. Olanrewaju Suraj.
According to the petition, a judgment by a British court accused Ozekhome and others of conspiring with corrupt Nigerian officials to procure forged national identity documents in order to “fraudulently claim ownership” of a property in North London.
The ICPC said it commenced investigations after a London property tribunal issued a judgment allegedly implicating Ozekhome and others in a network of fraud and forged documents.