Court orders forfeiture of N449m found in Lagos shop to FG

Justice Rilwan Aikawa of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division, has ordered the final forfeiture of the sum of N449million found in an abandoned Bureau de Change shop in Victoria Island, Lagos by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on April 8th.
Justice Aikawa gave the order for permanent forfeiture after no one came forward to claim ownership of the money.
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.

The anti-graft agency 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.
Counsel for the prosecutorial agency, Idris 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 of Tauheed and any interested party.
EFCC said even after the publication, neither Tauheed nor any other persons came forward to claim the money.

Justice Aikawa, while delivering judgment on the application for permanent forfeiture, held; “this court ordered, among others, the respondent (Tauheed) and any other interested party to show cause, within 14 days, why the interim forfeiture of N449million should not be made final.
“As far as my record shows, neither the respondent nor any other interested party has filed any affidavit or any other process to show cause why the interim order should not be made final.

“In the instant case, the respondent has, additionally, not filed any process in response to the motion on notice. In the circumstances, I have no option but to grant the application as prayed.
“Accordingly, I hereby order that the sum of N449, 597, 000 found in possession of the respondent, which sum is reasonably suspected to be proceeds of an unlawful activity, be finally forfeited to the Federal Government,” the judge held.

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