The Federal High Court in Abuja has mandated the permanent forfeiture of $7 million stored in a Providus Bank vault to the Federal Government, following a successful petition by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Justice Emeka Nwite issued the verdict on Monday after EFCC’s lead counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, presented the motion for final forfeiture.
Oyedepo reminded the court that on August 27, an interim order was granted to freeze the funds. This order was publicly announced to allow any interested parties to contest the forfeiture.
“Since no opposition has been raised, we hereby request the court to grant the final forfeiture of the seven million U.S. dollars,” Oyedepo stated.
During a previous session, attorney Gbenga Akande represented an undisclosed claimant but did not reveal the client’s identity. He committed to submitting an abuja-court-jurisdiction/” title=”Osun Government Challenges … …'s Authority Over Council Funds Dispute”>affidavit to justify the claim, leading the court to postpone proceedings until September 15.
When the case resumed on Monday, Akande was absent. Another lawyer, Darlington Ozurumba, appeared on behalf of a party with interest but declared, “We do not oppose the application.”
Justice Nwite concluded that the EFCC’s request was justified and ordered the funds to be forfeited to the government.
“Having reviewed the submissions and affidavit evidence, I find the application meritorious and hereby grant it,” the judge affirmed.
The affidavit supporting the motion, referenced FHC/ABJ/CS/1763/2025, was sworn by EFCC investigator Emmanuel Okeibunor. He revealed that the commission received credible intelligence indicating that $7 million was suspiciously transferred to Providus Bank in Lagos.
Further inquiry showed the cash was held in the bank’s vault from March 25 to 26 without being credited to any account. Bank officials claimed the deposit was made on behalf of the Managing Director of Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited, who denied this but acknowledged securing a $7 million loan from the bank.
Okeibunor also noted that Providus Bank failed to submit a Suspicious Transaction Report to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU). The funds, suspected to be linked to illicit activities, were eventually recovered in cash and handed over to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
