Diezani forfeits 56 more houses to FG

Barely two weeks after former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, was ordered by a Federal High Court, Lagos to permanently forfeit her $37.5 million Banana Island mansion, another court in the same jurisdiction, yesterday ordered a temporary forfeiture of 56 properties linked to the former minister.

Justice Chuka Obiozor, who gave the earlier order, similarly ruled that the sums of $2,740,197.96 and N84, 537,840.70 realised as rents on the property, be permanently forfeited.

But the latest interim order, captured properties variously located in Abuja, Lagos and Port Harcourt, believed to have been acquired by the former minister between 2011 and 2013, using proxies.

In its submissions, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission claimed Diezani paid $21,982,224, alleged to be funds that were proceeds of crime, for the properties,

Listed as first to sixth respondents in the suit are Diezani, Donald Amamgbo, and four firms namely; Chapel Properties Limited; Blue Nile Estate Limited; Azinga Meadows Limited; and Vistapoint Property Development Limited.

The commission listed the properties to include; 29 terraced houses, comprising four-bedroom penthouse apartments (8 units),   three-bedroom apartments (6 units), three-bedroom maisonettes (2 units ),  twin bedroom apartments (2 units) and one unit of four-bedroom apartment.

Others  are;  houses located at No. 7, Thurnbull Street and 5, Raymond Street, Yaba, which the anti-graft agency said were allegedly bought by Diezani at the United States dollar equivalent of N937,000,000 through Chapel Properties Ltd.

Also listed for forfeiture are;  four-bedroom  terraced houses (16 units ) in Heritage Court Estate, Plot 2C, Omerelu Street, Diobu, Government Residential Area (GRA) Phase 1 extension, Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, purchased at N928,000,000 through Blue Nile Estate Ltd.

The rest are three-bedroom terraced houses (13 units) with one-room maid’s quarters en suite procured at the cost of N650, 000,000 through Azinga Meadows Ltd.

Relying on an ex-parte application brought before Justice Abdulaziz Anka , EFCC counsel, Anselem Ozioko,  pleaded with the  judge to order temporary forfeiture of the properties to the federal government, a request that was instantly granted.

Further to that, Justice Anka directed that a firm should be appointed to manage the forfeited   properties.

Similarly, the judge ordered the EFCC to publish the order in a national newspaper, stating reasons same should not be permanent.

The counsel also submitted that Diezani used the companies as fronts to acquire the properties, saying the anti-graft agency similarly discovered 14 other firms incorporated for the ex-minister for the purpose of holding the titles to those properties.

In a supporting affidavit to back up the ex parte application, an EFCC investigator, Mr. Sombori Mayana, said the EFCC stumbled on the said properties in 2016, following the execution of a search warrant on the office and premises of Amamgbo.
“Among the documents recovered from the office of Mr. Donald Chidi Amamgbo was an undated report titled ‘HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL ATTORNEY EOTK PRODUCT – AUGUST REPORT

“The report contained a list of 18 companies and several properties located in the United Kingdom, Nigeria and the United States of America.

“During the course of his interview, Mr. Donald Amamgbo told us that he registered the 18 companies to assist Mrs. Diezani Alison Madueke in holding titles of the properties,” the investigator stated.

According to the affidavit, a principal manager and head, business development of FBN Mortgages Ltd, Mrs. Bolanle Onotu, confirmed that the properties were variously sold by the her company at the cost of N937million, N928million and N650million to the ex-minister’s alleged proxies.

According to Onotu, payments for same were received through First Bank account numbers 2004483850 and 2008133531 between September 23, 2011, and June 16, 2015.

In the affidavit, Mayana also averred that “First Bank of Nigeria Plc stated that the source of the money was from Mrs. Diezani Alison Madueke and that the bank picked up United States dollars from her house at 10, Frederick Chiluba Close off Jose Marti Street, Asokoro, Abuja”, alleging that a total of $16,041,906 was picked up by the bank at Diezani’s house between September 29, 2011, and April 4, 2013, and converted to Naira.

Continuing, the investigator also said another firm, Adebern Parks Nigeria Ltd, received N802, 500,000 in its Zenith Bank account from an Ecobank account for purchase of some of the properties, explaining that “one Mr Adeyemi Edun received the sum of N840, 000,000 from Skye Bank Plc, which on his instruction, transferred the sum of N805, 000,000 to his Eco Bank account from where he paid Adebern Parks for the property.”

Justice Anka   adjourned till September 8, 2017 when any party interested in the property is expected to appear before him and advance reasons the court order should not stay.

 

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