Court Orders Forfeiture Of N325.4m Diezani’s Landed Property

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered the temporary forfeiture to the Federal Government of a landed property valued at N325.4m belonging to the former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke.

Justice Babs Kuewumi granted the order of temporary forfeiture of the property after listening to a motion ex-parte filed and argued by the counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Anselem Ozioko.

In the Motion ex-parte, the EFCC is seeking an interim order of the court forfeiting to the Federal Government of Nigeria, the property described as a vacant plot of land and said to be at Plot 13, Block 11, Oniru Chieftaincy Family Private Estate, Lekki, Lagos

The EFCC said the property was reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activity.

After listening to the arguments from the counsel to EFCC, Justice Babs Kuewumi granted the application for interim forfeiture of the property to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Justice Kweuwumi further ruled that the order must be published in a national newspaper for anybody who has interest in the property sought to be forfeited to come forward and show cause why the property should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.