Finally, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has named the owner of a flat in Osborne, Ikoyi where the sum of $43,449,947, £27,800 and N23,218,000 (approximately N13 billion) were recently recovered.
On Friday, the EFCC told Justice Muslim Hassan of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, that the wife of the suspended Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Folashade Oke, allegedly acquired the property situated at 13, Osbourne Road, Osbourne Towers, Lagos, for N360 million.
According to the EFCC, Oke made a cash payment of $1.6m (N360m) for the purchase of the flat between August 25 and September 3, 2015 in the name of a company, Chobe Ventures Limited.
She and and her son, Ayodele Oke Junior, are said to be directors in the company.
Investigations also revealed that Oke made the cash payment in tranches of $700,000, $650,000 and $353,700 to a Bureau de Change company, Sulah Petroleum and Gas Limited, which later converted the sums into N360,000,000 and subsequently paid it to Fine and Country Limited for the purchase of the property.
EFCC counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, tendered as exhibit the receipt issued by Fine and Country Limited to Chobe Ventures Limited.
“The very act of making cash payment of $1.6m without going through any financial institution by Mrs. Folashade Oke for the acquisition of Flat 7B, Osborne Towers, is a criminal act punishable by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Amendment Act,” Mr Oyedepo told the court.
Also, in the affidavit filed by the prosecution, Chobe Ventures, which is not into any business, was said to be merely incorporated to retain proceeds of suspected unlawful activities of Oke.
While urging the court to order the permanent forfeiture of the funds to the Federal Government, Oyedepo said the property, which was purchased in a criminal manner, made the money recovered therein to be proceeds of unlawful acts.
Oyedepo further said that despite the newspaper advertisement of the initial order of April 13, 2017 temporarily forfeiting the money to the Federal Government, no one showed up in court today to claim ownership of the money.
Oyedepo also observed that Chobe Ventures Limited, in whose apartment the huge sums were recovered, did not come to court to challenge the forfeiture order, despite being served with the motion on notice at its registered address of No. 18 Ogunmodede street, off Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos.
Justice Hassan adjourned the matter June 6, 2017.