Land Grabbing: Police Arraign 3 For Forgery, Illegal Occupation

The Police in Lagos have charged three suspected land grabbers before the Lagos State High Court in Lagos over allegations of forgery, illegal occupation and the forceful takeover of land.

The police listed an official of the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Alabi Collins, alongside Julius Eshiet and a company, Al-Trade Agencies Limited, in the 13-count charge filed by the Office of the Inspector General of Police before Justice Akinwunmi Idowu.
The disputed property is situated at Block C, Plots 30 and 37, also known as No. 6 (formerly No. 37A), Ajisafe Street, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos.

In the court filings dated September 1, 2025, the prosecuting counsel, Rotshang Dimka from the Police Force Headquarters in Abuja, stated that the case arose from a petition filed by Viagem Property and Investment Limited on July 1, 2024.

The company accused Al-Trade Agencies, Julius Eshiet, and one Yemi Kazeem Balogun of land grabbing, malicious damage, and document forgery.

Viagem claimed that the 9,425-square-yard property had been legally transferred over the years, beginning with a lease in 1961 by the Western Region Government to the Nigerian Enamelware Company.

The lease was subsequently assigned to Western Metal Products Company Limited (WEMPCO) in 1993 and finally sold in 2019 to Viagem, which maintained peaceful possession until 2021.

The petitioner alleged that in 2021, the defendants, supported by armed thugs and individuals posing as police officers, forcibly evicted Viagem’s officials, in violation of the Lagos State Properties Protection Law of 2016.

Lagos State Task Force operatives later marked the site as “under investigation,” but it is claimed that the defendants’ agents destroyed the signpost.

During investigations, Collins, a director in the Federal Ministry of Housing, contended that the land was federal property, referencing a 1946 Gazette and an allocation made to Al-Trade Agencies on October 16, 2021.

Documents provided included a 2003 application form, a 2003 lease offer, and a Certificate of Occupancy allegedly signed by former Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola.

However, the defendants’ pleas have not been taken.

Justice Idowu has adjourned the matter to Friday, September 12, 2025, for arraignment.

The judge had also remanded Eshiet at the Lagos State Police Command, while Collins’ counsel requested an adjournment on medical grounds.