Court orders forfeiture of assets linked to alleged Ponzi scheme

A Federal High Court sitting successful Lafia, Nasarawa State, has ordered the last forfeiture of aggregate properties and currency to the Federal Government pursuing an exertion by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Delivering judgement, Justice M.O. Olajuwon held that the anti-graft bureau provided capable grounds to found that the assets were proceeds of unlawful activities allegedly linked to 1 Theophilus Oloche Ebonyi.

The forfeited assets see a 23-room edifice and lawsuit centre, De Thinkers Home and Apartments, located successful Nyanya Gwandara; a warehouse and sachet h2o mill successful Koroduma, Karu Local Government Area; 2 bureau buildings on Philip Doda Street successful the aforesaid area; and Theo International Academy Primary School, besides successful Nyanya Gwandara.

Additionally, the tribunal ordered the forfeiture of N1,005,489.27 recovered successful a First Bank relationship linked to the respondent.

Justice Olajuwon ruled that the EFCC met the ineligible threshold nether Section 17(1) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act.

“The Commission has placed capable materials earlier the tribunal to beryllium that the assets are proceeds of unlawful activity,” the justice stated.

He further noted that erstwhile the EFCC established tenable suspicion, the load shifted to the respondents to warrant the legitimacy ...