The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has narrated before Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, how former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, used three companies to pay N2.2 billion to buy a sprawling estate in the Apo area of Abuja, containing 753 duplexes, which has now been forfeited to the Nigerian government.
It had earlier been exclusively reported that operatives of the EFCC found a “receipt for roofing” of the large estate in Abuja within the home of Emefiele during a search by operatives in Lagos State.
Meanwhile, the EFCC in the court documents which SaharaReporters obtained on Tuesday revealed how Emefiele used three companies to acquire the property.
In an affidavit in support of the Motion on Notice in suit No FCT/HC/M/14519/2024, in Re: Application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for an order of final forfeiture of property contained in schedule, the EFCC said the “property is reasonably suspected to have been acquired and or developed with proceeds of unlawful activity pursuant to section 17 of the advance fee fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act No. 14, 2006 and Section 44 (2) B of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
The anti-graft agency named the three companies linked to Emefiele as ‘Ice Frozen Food & Ventures’, ‘Kelvito Integrated Service’, and Ifeadigo Integrated Services.
Idi Musa, an investigating officer with the EFCC, who deposed the affidavit, stated that the Commission, while investigating the alleged monumental fraud carried out by the immediate past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Emefiele and his cronies, traced and discovered several properties reasonably suspected to have been acquired and or developed with proceeds of unlawful activities.
Musa in his deposition avowed that on the 17th day of September, 2024, the commission located the property with the assistance of a surveyor from Abuja Geographical Information Systems (AGIS) using search results and coordinates.
According to him, upon locating the said property and names of persons associated with the property, letters of investigation were sent to relevant banks requesting for the opening packages of the said companies used in funding and developing the said property.
Tracing the property, the investigating officer revealed that the said land known as Plot 109, lying and situated at Cadastral Zone C09, was initially allocated to Windermere Nigeria Limited on the 15th day of September, 2010, for mass housing development.
However, the title of the property was later transferred to M.G Property Limited via an executed Deed of Assignment. Sometime in August 2021, the said M.G Properties transferred its title to H & Y Business Global Limited.
He further revealed that the said H & Y Business Global Limited is also being investigated for acquiring one of the properties forfeited in the interim by the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, and also for the sum of N2.2 billion paid on behalf of Emefiele.
Musa maintained that the monies H & Y Business Global Limited used for the acquisition of the property were not from their legitimate income but rather were fraudulently procured by Godwin Emefiele and his cronies to disguise and conceal the unlawful origin of the funds used in the acquisition of the properties.
According to the deponent, further investigations revealed that three different companies were used in paying and acquiring the property now sought to be finally forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The court document said, “That Ifeadigo Integrated Services’ is one of the three companies used in the acquisition of the property sought to be forfeited.”
“That in the course of the fraudulent acquisition of the property sought to be forfeited, Ifeadigo Integrated Services was procured to transfer the sum of N900,000,000.00 reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities to the account of M.G Properties Limited. The account statement evidencing the said payment is hereby attached and marked EXHIBIT EFCC 02.”
“That the second company that was procured and used in the acquisition of the property sought to be forfeited is ‘Kelvito Integrated Service.”
“That the said Kelvito Integrated Service, transferred the sum of N700,000,000.00 (Seven Hundred Million Naira only) reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities to M.G Properties Limited. The account statement evidencing the said payment is hereby attached and mark EXHIBIT EFCC 03.”
“That the third company used in the fraudulent acquisition of the property sought to be forfeited is one ‘Ice Frozen Food & Ventures.'”
Musa revealed that the said Ice Frozen Food & Ventures was procured to retain and transfer the sum of N600 million reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities to M.G Properties Limited for the acquisition of the said property, now sought to be forfeited in the interim to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“That MG Properties received the aggregate sum of N2,200,000,000.00 (Two Billion, Two Hundred Million Naira only) from Ifeadigo Integrated Services, Kelvito Integrated Service and Ice Frozen Food & Ventures via its account. The account statement of MG Properties evidencing the said payment is hereby attached and marked EXHIBIT EFCC 04.”
“That the said three companies used for the payment of the property are enmeshed in criminal maneuvering of layering proceeds of illegal activities of Mr. Godwin Emefiele.”
“That the directors of Ifeadigo Integrated Services and Kelvito Integrated Service were arrested and their statement voluntarily obtained in the course of investigation. The said extra-judicial statements are hereby attached and marked exhibit EFCC 05(a) & (b) respectively.”
Emefiele owned the large estate in Abuja with 753 duplexes forfeited to the Nigerian government through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in a court ruling.
Human rights activist and convener of the #RevolutionNow Movement, Omoyele Sowore, had confirmed the development in a post on his Twitter.
Emefiele is standing trial on several charges bordering on corruption, including in the new naira redesign before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Maitama, Abuja.
Justice Maryann Anenih had adjourned the matter till December 4, 2024, and January 21, 2025, for continuation of trial.
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Sowore had earlier blasted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for refusing to name the former Nigerian “top brass” who owned the large estate in Abuja with 753 duplexes.
Sowore, former presidential candidate for the African Action Congress (AAC) in the 2023 general elections, had noted on Monday that the EFCC was now afraid of big thieves and had become their public relations officer.
In an update, the human rights activist said, “I just heard from the grapevine that the 753 duplexes forfeited by an FCT court in Apo belong to Muhammadu Buhari’s CBN gov, Godwin Emefiele.”
It was earlier reported that Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie, on Monday, ordered the final forfeiture of an estate in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, measuring 150,500 square meters and containing 753 units of duplexes and other apartments.
The EFCC said in a release that this was the single largest asset recovery by the Commission since its inception in 2003.
The estate rests on Plot 109, Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja.
Court papers filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission have linked the immediate-past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, to the massive Abuja property with 753 duplexes and other apartments located in the Cadastral Zone area of the capital city.
The anti-graft agency on Monday announced the recovery of the property from an unnamed ex-government top brass, describing the property as the biggest single recovery it had made in the course of fighting corruption since its establishment in 2003.
The recovery followed a ruling delivered on December 2, 2024, by Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the FCT High Court in Apo.
In the court documents obtained by our correspondent on Tuesday, the EFCC ran a narration linking Emefiele to the massive property spanning 150,500 square meters and identified as Plot 109, Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja.
Emefiele is currently being prosecuted by the EFCC in three separate cases before different judges.
Before Justice Hamza Mu’azu, he is being tried for procurement fraud, forgery of former President Muhammadu Buhari’s signature, and other charges.
Before Justice Rahman Oshodi at the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos, Emefiele is charged with alleged fraud involving $4.5bn and N2.8bn.
Additionally, Emefiele is before Justice Maryann Anenih of the FCT High Court in Abuja for allegedly approving the printing of N684.5m notes at the cost of N18.96bn.
According to the document, Emefiele allegedly carried out “monumental fraud” as the CBN governor with his cronies to acquire several properties, including the estate.
“The commission, whilst investigating the alleged monumental fraud carried out by the immediate past Governor of the CBN and his cronies, traced and discovered several properties reasonably suspected to have been acquired and or developed with proceeds of unlawful activities.
“The property highlighted in Schedule A to this application is one of the said properties recovered, having been reasonably suspected to have been acquired/ developed with proceeds of unlawful activities.”
The EFCC alleged that
Emefiele’s accomplices used fraudulent funds channeled through several shell companies to acquire the estate.
The EFCC further said that the matter was still under investigation and that “the matter of criminal investigation continues.”
