Court Orders Final Forfeiture Of N449m Discovered In Bureau De Change
Justice Rilwan Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the final forfeiture of the sum of N449,597,000 abandoned in a Bureau de Change shop in Victoria Island, Lagos.
The said sum was discovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC on April 8th.
Justice Aikawa gave the order following an ex-parte application filed by Rotimi Oyedepo on behalf of the federal government. The application was not challenged, leaving the judge with no other option.
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“I have perused the motion on notice and as far as my records show, neither the respondent nor any other interested party has filed any affidavit or any other process to show course why the interim order should not be granted,” Aikawa said.
“I have no other option but to grant the motion as prayed.”
“I hereby order that the sum of N449,597,000 found in the possession of the respondent which is believed to be proceeds of unlawful activity be finally forfeited to the federal government of Nigeria.”
The judge had on April 19th granted an order for the interim forfeiture of the money pending when anyone would come forward to claim it.
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Counsel for the EFCC, Idris Mohammed, had approached the court for an order for the forfeiture of the money after a respondent in the case, Mohammed Tauheed, failed to come forward to claim the money.
Mr Mohammed told the judge that the interim order of April 19 had been advertised in the newspaper on May 11, so as to bring the case to the notice any interested party.
