Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja has affirmed the final forfeiture of $13 million to the Federal Government, a sum linked to Lagos socialite, Ms Aisha Achimugu and her company, Oceangate Engineering Oil & Gas Ltd.
In his judgment on Wednesday, Justice Nwite held that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had successfully established that the funds were proceeds of fraud and unlawful activity.
The suit, instituted by Oceangate to claim the money, failed to prove the legitimacy of the funds, and the court dismissed claims that the $13 million was a gift received by the company through Achimugu.
The court ruled that neither Achimugu nor any alleged donor came forward to defend the money.
The judge emphasized that the burden of proving lawful ownership of the money rested with the applicant, which Oceangate failed to meet.
The company did not show evidence of business activities generating the funds, nor payments from any clients.
Justice Nwite had earlier, on August 22, 2025, granted EFCC an ex-parte interim order for the forfeiture of the sum, directing the commission to publish the order for anyone interested to show cause within 14 days why the fund should not be permanently forfeited.
EFCC investigator, Usman Aliyu submitted an affidavit detailing that Oceangate, registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission in 2005, had participated in licensing bids for deep offshore PPL302 and shallow water PPL3007 oil blocks.
Investigations revealed that the company’s total obligations to the government before issuance of the Petroleum Prospecting Licenses amounted to $37.2 million.
Payment installments totaling millions were made through Oceangate’s Zenith Bank account, including $7 million via Providus Bank in March 2025.
Aliyu alleged that to fulfill the signature bonus payments for PPL302 and PPL3007, Oceangate conspired with unlicensed Bureau de Change operators and bank officials to retain and transfer $13 million suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity.
Individuals including Suleiman Muhammed Chiroma, Dantani Abubakar Hassan of Ashrab Energy, and Tirmizi Muhammed Usman of Tripple A & Tee Oil Nigeria Ltd were said to have been procured by the company to collect cash for this purpose.
The funds were also allegedly sourced from public contractors in Lagos State who had no business relationship with Oceangate, later converted to US dollars and transferred to Oceangate’s accounts.
Aliyu insisted that the $13 million did not derive from legitimate business activities and represented funds suspected to be unlawfully obtained.
Oceangate, through director Iliya Wakil, argued that the funds were partly legitimate earnings and partly gifts to Achimugu, denying any conspiracy with unregistered BDC operators or bank officials.
The company claimed Chiroma acted independently and legally, and it had no dealings with Hassan or Usman. Wakil, identified by EFCC as a nominal director with no shareholding, admitted in a statement that he took instructions from Achimugu and had drawn salary only from her other company, Felak Concept Group Limited.
EFCC described Oceangate as a shell company holding petroleum assets acquired with funds suspected to be unlawfully obtained.
Auditors used by the company relied on memorandums of understanding rather than actual financial records, and Achimugu herself admitted in an extra-judicial statement that Oceangate had not executed any contracts in the private or public sector.
Given these findings, Justice Nwite ruled that the $13 million should be forfeited to the Federal Government.
Previously, on September 15, 2025, the court had also ordered the final forfeiture of $7 million lodged at Providus Bank after no claimants came forward. Felak Concept Group Limited later issued a statement denying any connection of Achimugu or Oceangate to the $7 million transaction at Providus Bank.
Source – BarristerNG.com
(vitalnewsngr.com)
