PICTORIAL: Court Orders Final Forfeiture Of 52 Lekki Housing Units To Federal Government

A Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has ordered the final forfeiture of 52 terrace and maisonette housing units in the Lekki area of Lagos to the Federal Government after ruling that the properties were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.

The EFCC disclosed this in a statement published on its verified Facebook page on Saturday.

Justice Alexandra Owoeye delivered the judgment on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, in a case brought by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The properties, located at Mercyville Estate, Covenant Way, off New Road, Ilasan, Lekki, were recovered from Fielddreams Limited, Ifeanyi Nweke and Amex Savings and Loans Limited.

The EFCC, through its counsel, Franklin Ofoma, had filed a Motion on Notice seeking the final forfeiture of the properties after securing an interim forfeiture order on August 14, 2024, before Justice Akintayo Aluko.

As part of the earlier ruling, Justice Aluko directed the anti-graft agency to publish the interim forfeiture order in a national newspaper to allow any interested parties to show cause why the properties should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.

Following the publication, the respondents filed an affidavit opposing the application.

According to the EFCC, the respondents initially stated in their affidavit that the funds used to develop the 52 housing units came from the sale of a portion of land acquired through the sale of 29 terrace and maisonette units valued at ₦1.9 billion.

However, the Commission argued that the respondents later contradicted themselves by claiming that the 3rd to 19th applicants had failed to complete the housing units. The anti-graft agency maintained that this conflicted with their earlier deposition, in which they stated that construction had been completed in 2020 and that proceeds from the sales were used to complete furnishing and interior decoration of the remaining units.

While moving the application for final forfeiture, Ofoma informed the court that the EFCC had fully complied with the publication requirement ordered by the court.

He also told the court that the application was supported by a 31-paragraph affidavit deposed to by Afolabi Seyi Oladele, a litigation officer in the EFCC’s Legal Department.

According to him, the Commission had established reasonable grounds to suspect that the properties were proceeds of unlawful activities and urged the court to grant the application.

The EFCC counsel further alleged that the second respondent, Ifeanyi Nweke, was a fugitive facing criminal charges.

He told the court that Nweke had refused to appear before Justice R.A. Oshodi and Justice Okunuga in separate criminal cases.

“He has refused to appear before Justice R.A. Oshodi and Justice Okunuga in Charge No. ID/25771C/2025 and Charge No. ID/25769C/2025 for his arraignment and to defend the charges if he believes that he did not commit any of the offences contained in the charges against him,” Ofoma said.

He also informed the court that two subsisting warrants of arrest had been issued against Nweke and alleged that he had jumped the administrative bail earlier granted to him by the EFCC.

In her ruling, Justice Owoeye rejected the respondents’ affidavit, describing it as contradictory.

“Premised on the foregoing position of the law, I hold that since this court cannot pick and choose which of the evidence given by Respondents to believe, it must consequently reject the entire affidavit evidence placed before it by the 1st-3rd Respondents,” the judge ruled.

She added, “Accordingly, I reject the 1st-3rd Respondents’ Affidavit to Show Cause/Counter-Affidavit to the Applicant/Respondent’s Motion on Notice for Final Forfeiture filed on the 9th of February, 2026, but deemed properly filed on the 28th of April, 2026.

“The consequence is that there is no opposition to the Motion filed by the 1st and 2nd Applicants for the grant of an order of final forfeiture.”

Justice Owoeye further held that the EFCC had successfully established a legal basis for the forfeiture.

“Premised on the foregoing, I find that 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. I therefore resolve the sole issue in this application in favour of the Applicants,” she said.

Granting the application, the judge concluded, “Having resolved the sole issue in this application in favour of the applicants, I hold that this application has merit and ought to be granted. Accordingly, I grant the relief sought in this application as prayed.”