The Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has ordered the final forfeiture of 52 terrace and maisonette units in Lekki to the Federal Government after ruling that the properties were proceeds of unlawful activities.
Justice Alexandra Owoeye delivered the judgment on Wednesday, granting the application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Fielddreams Limited, Ifeanyi Nweke and Amex Savings and Loans Limited.
The forfeited properties are located at Mercyville Estate, Covenant Way, off New Road, Ilasan, Lekki, Lagos.
The ruling followed a Motion on Notice argued by EFCC counsel, Franklin Ofoma, who urged the court to uphold an earlier interim forfeiture order and permanently transfer the properties to the Federal Government.
The anti-graft agency had initially secured an interim forfeiture order on August 14, 2024, before Justice Akintayo Aluko after an ex parte application. The order was granted in favour of Dr. Kennedy Okonkwo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Capital Gardens Limited.
Justice Aluko had also directed the EFCC to publish the interim forfeiture order in a national newspaper to allow any interested party to appear before the court and show cause why the properties should not be permanently forfeited.
Following the publication, the respondents challenged the application, filing an affidavit in opposition. However, the court found their defence riddled with inconsistencies.
In their initial affidavit, the respondents claimed the funds used to develop the 52 housing units were generated from the sale of a portion of land acquired through the sale of 29 terrace and maisonette units valued at ₦1.9 billion. They maintained that the proceeds were used to complete the construction, furnishing and interior decoration of the remaining units, insisting the project had been completed in 2020.
They later contradicted that position by alleging that the 3rd to 19th applicants had failed to complete the same housing units, a reversal that became central to the court’s decision.
Arguing the application for final forfeiture, Ofoma told the court that the EFCC had complied with all directives relating to the publication of the interim forfeiture order. He added that the motion was supported by a 31-paragraph affidavit sworn to by Afolabi Seyi Oladele, a litigation officer in the Commission’s Legal Department.
According to the EFCC, investigations established reasonable grounds to believe that the properties were proceeds of unlawful activities.
The Commission also informed the court that the second respondent, Ifeanyi Nweke, is a fugitive facing criminal charges.
Ofoma disclosed that Nweke had failed to appear before Justice R.A. Oshodi and Justice Okunuga in Charge No. ID/25771C/2025 and Charge No. ID/25769C/2025, respectively, for arraignment. He further told the court that two subsisting warrants of arrest had been issued against Nweke and that he had jumped the administrative bail earlier granted by the EFCC.
In her judgment, Justice Owoeye held that the respondents’ conflicting affidavit evidence had destroyed the credibility of their case. “Since this court cannot pick and choose which of the evidence given by the respondents to believe, it must consequently reject the entire affidavit evidence placed before it,” the judge ruled.
She consequently struck out the respondents’ affidavit filed to oppose the forfeiture application, holding that there was effectively no valid opposition before the court.
The judge further ruled that the EFCC had successfully established reasonable grounds to suspect that the properties were proceeds of unlawful activities and was therefore entitled to the reliefs sought. “Having demonstrated grounds for reasonable suspicion that the properties in question are the proceeds of unlawful activities, the applicants are entitled to the reliefs sought in this application,” Justice Owoeye held.
Concluding the case, the court declared that the application had merit and granted the EFCC’s request, ordering the final forfeiture of all 52 terrace and maisonette units in Lekki to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
