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A businesswoman, Abdullahi Saidu, has commenced moves to vacate an interim court order forfeiting her properties in an alleged N2.5billion fraud case.
However, proceedings were on Friday adjourned to October 16 by Justice Musa Liman at the instance of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which is yet to file its counter-affidavit to the application.
Counsel to the anti-graft agency, Mr J.N. Dongonyaro, told the court that he had yet to file a counter-affidavit to Saidu’s application seeking to vacate the order.
Justice Liman subsequently adjourned the case for hearing of the motion.
The EFCC had obtained an ex-parte order, which temporarily froze Saidu’s assets, pending the hearing and determination of the suit. But Saidu is challenging the order.
Court processes sighted by journalists showed that the property covered by the order are two units of four-bedroom semi-detached duplexes at Aliyu Villa, Brick City Phase 1, Kubwa, Abuja; a three-bedroom terrace duplex at Tungan Yakubu, along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway; two parcels of land designated as Plots C1 and C2; and Ngeil Supermarket Plaza, located at Sabon Wuse, Tafa Local Government Area of Niger State.
The commission brought the application under the EFCC Establishment Act, 2004, and the 1999 Constitution (as amended). In the ex-parte originating motion, it sought an interim order to preserve the property, which it said investigations showed were allegedly bought with fraudulently obtained funds.
The application was supported by a nine-paragraph affidavit, deposed to by Sale Shuaibu, an EFCC operative assigned to investigate allegations of conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and obtaining money by false pretence against Saidu and others.
According to the EFCC, the investigation followed a petition by Alhaji Adamu Ya’u, who alleged that Saidu, in connivance with Kamal Oladayo Soetan and Adamu Abdullahi Yerima, also known as Adamu Waziri, defrauded him in a diamond transaction.
The petition alleged that the suspects claimed to own 30 parcels of diamond pallets weighing about 50.210kg and 22 parcels of rough diamonds, which they offered to sell to him. They allegedly demanded various sums for clearance and other purposes connected with the shipment.
Saidu allegedly collected $773,000 in tranches to clear the consignment at a Nigerian port; Soetan purportedly collected $553,000 to pay Customs officers; while Yerima was said to have collected $672,000 in batches, purportedly for final clearance by the Department of State Services (DSS). Ya’u put the total amount at N2.5billion.
The EFCC said investigations showed that the diamonds were never supplied after the payments were made and that the suspects’ claims of payments to the DSS for clearance at the ports were false.
It added that there was no diamond consignment for sale, as represented by the suspects, and that Saidu used her share of the proceeds to acquire the properties.
According to the affidavit, the suspects were initially apprehended by the DSS for alleged impersonation but were released following a court order and have since gone into hiding.
The commission urged the court to preserve the property through interim forfeiture, pending the conclusion of investigations and other legal processes.
