The Federal High Court in Lagos on Tuesday ordered a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Mike Ozekhome, to temporarily forfeit the N75m in his Guaranty Trust Bank account to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Ozekhome is the counsel for the Governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, whose accounts were also frozen by the EFCC for alleged money laundering.
In a ruling on Tuesday, Justice Abdulaziz Anka said Ozekhome would forfeit the N75m found in his account for 120 days pending investigations by the EFCC.
The judge made the order following an ex parte application made to that effect by the EFCC, which claimed that the N75m deposited into Ozekhome’s account on 15, 2016, was suspected to be proceeds of crime.
Moving the application on Tuesday, counsel for the EFCC, Mr. Idris Mohammed, informed the court that the application was brought to court pursuant to Section 29 of EFCC Act.
Attached to the ex parte application, the lawyer said, were three exhibits, marked 01, 02 and 03, as well as an affidavit of urgency sworn to by an investigator with the EFCC, Tosin Owobo.
Mohammed urged Justice Anka to grant the motion ex parte and order the temporary forfeiture of the N75m, which the EFCC said it found in Ozekhome’s account.
In a short ruling, Justice Anka granted the order.
The judge said any party, who was not satisfied with his order, had the right of appeal.
