The Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Friday ordered the final forfeiture of a property suspected to have been acquired with proceeds from unlawful activities.

Vacation judge, Justice Deinde Dipeolu, ruled that the property, situated at 26 Tolu Road, Olodi Apapa, within Ajeromi-Ifelodun Local Government Area of Lagos State, be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

The order followed a motion on notice filed by the Lagos Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, represented by its counsel, Hannatu Kofarnaisa.

In January 2025, the court had initially granted an interim forfeiture of the property and directed that the order be published in a national newspaper to allow any interested parties to appear and show cause why the property should not be permanently forfeited.

During Friday’s proceedings, Kofarnaisa informed the court that no objections had been filed within the 14-day period provided after the publication, thereby paving the way for the final forfeiture.

The application was further supported by an affidavit sworn by Gyal Maina Gapani, an EFCC operative.

After reviewing the submissions, Justice Dipeolu found merit in the EFCC’s application and granted an order for the permanent forfeiture of the property to the Federal Government of Nigeria, in favour of Sterling Bank Plc.

In the affidavit, Gapani had stated, “that the Commission on the 18th day of July 2022, received a petition from Sterling Bank PLC bothering on criminal conversion of funds and stealing of funds belonging to the bank wherein an unauthorized transfer of huge sums of money was done.
“The petitioner alleged that the unauthorized transfer of funds was due to a system glitch in the bank wherein the total sum of N295.916,201.02 (Two Hundred and Ninety Five Million, Nine Hundred and Sixteen Thousand, Two Hundred and One Naira Two Kobo) was stolen by some customers of the bank and same converted to their own personal use.

“That as of the time the said customers allegedly stole the said sum, they do not have a corresponding sum in their accounts.

“That the alleged sum was stolen via PayAttitude Global Limited, which is an e-bank wallet and a payment scheme of the Sterling Bank Plc.

“That the commission wrote a letter to Pay Attitude Global LTD and they responded vide a letter dated 17th March 2023 forwarding the payment transaction scheme of the said Ojora Sulaimon Kehinde.

“Preliminary investigations revealed that due to the system glitch, one of the suspects, by name Ojora Sulaimon Kehinde, criminally converted the total sum of N89,000,000 (Eighty Nine Million Naira) belonging to Sterling Bank PLC.

“That in a bid to launder and fraudulently conceal the said sum, he transferred a substantial part of the said sum to his wife, Aminat Olatanwa Ojora, vide her bank account number domiciled with Sterling Bank PLC.

“That as at the time the said Ojora Sulalmon Kehinde transferred the said monies to the account of Aminat Olatanwa Ojora, his wife, using the PayAttitude platform to be used for the purchase of the property now sought to be forfeited.

“That the said Ojora Suleimon Kehinde did not have the corresponding sum in his account as at the time he transferred the monies to his wife.

“That the said Ojora Sulaimon Kehinde procured his wife to transfer the sum of 17,000,000 (Seventeen Mlilion Naira) to one Chuksy Odozy Osazuwa account number domiciled in Zenith Bank Plc for the purchase of a property situate and located at No 26. Tolu Road, Olodi Apapa, Ajeromi Ifelodun Local Government Area of Lagos State, now sought to be forfeited”.

“That Ojora Sulaimon Kehinde procured his brother Muritala Sulaimon Kehinde to front for him in the purchase and execution of the deed of assignment for the purchase of the said property situated and located at No 26. Tolu Road, Olodi Apapa, Ajeromi Ifelodun Local Government Area of Lagos State, now sought to be forfeited”.

Oba Joseph Oloyede, the Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, and a Nigerian pastor, Edward Oluwasanmi, have pleaded guilty to charges of COVID-19 relief fraud amounting to $4.2 million in the United States.

According to court records, Oluwasanmi used companies including Dayspring Transportation Limited, Dayspring Holding Incorporated, and Dayspring Property Incorporated to illegally obtain and divert funds intended for businesses struggling during the pandemic. The two men were charged with 13 counts, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud, money laundering, and engaging in monetary transactions involving criminally derived property.

Oluwasanmi, represented by his counsel Henry Hilow, pleaded guilty on April 10 to three counts of the indictment, admitting to using fraud proceeds to purchase a commercial property in South Euclid, Ohio, and transferring funds into a brokerage account. Oloyede submitted his guilty plea on April 21, and both are set to be sentenced on July 2.

Oba Oloyede, a U.S.-based accountant and information systems expert before his enthronement in 2019, frequently travelled between Nigeria and the U.S. for engagements. His extended absence from Ipetumodu had already raised concerns among indigenes, particularly after he demolished the community’s palace with a promise to rebuild it, only to be arrested in the U.S.

Investigations revealed that between April 2020 and February 2022, Oloyede and Oluwasanmi submitted falsified applications for the Paycheck Protection Programme and Economic Injury Disaster Loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, using fake tax and wage documents to secure the funds. The act was designed to support small businesses and nonprofits impacted by the economic fallout from the pandemic.

Court documents further alleged that Oloyede used companies such as Available Tax Services Incorporated, Available Financial Corporation, and Available Transportation Company to perpetrate the fraud. Oluwasanmi similarly exploited his own companies to secure millions of dollars for personal use, breaching U.S. federal laws.

No fewer than 50 houses were destroyed on Friday night when a powerful windstorm swept through Mahanga community in Awe Local Government Area of Nasarawa State.