EFCC secures final forfeiture of Emefiele’s $1.4 million allegedly domiciled in Titan Bank

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secure a final forfeiture order of the Federal High Court Lagos against a $1.4 million allegedly linked to the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.

This is coming days after another court sitting in Lagos ordered final forfeiture of N11,140,000,000.00 worth of properties and N1.04 billion traced to Emefiele by the EFCC.

The anti-graft agency stressed that the monies, which allegedly amount to proceeds of crime, are domiciled in Titan Bank to the knowledge of the embattled CBN governor.

In the motion exparte filed by counsel to the EFCC, Bilikisu Buhari-Bala, the ex-CBN Governor was accused of contravening Section 44 (2)(B) of the 1999 Constitution.

That section states that no moveable property or any interest in an immovable property shall be taken possession of compulsorily except for the imposition of penalties or forfeiture for breach of any law, whether under civil process or after conviction for an offence.

The lawyer had argued that between 2021 and 2022, when accessibility to foreign exchange in Nigeria was difficult, several international entities operating in Nigeria had to resort to different means to source Forex.

She added that one Uzeobo Anthony and Adebanjo Olurotimi used a firm, to collect bribes and gratification on behalf of Godwin Emefiele, to get approval for accessing Forex, adding that one of the entities (NP) paid a total sum of USD 26,552 million, into the account of firm domiciled in Titan Trust account number 2000000500.

The lawyer stated,

“The investigation traced the funds to having been fixed into interest-yielding accounts, dissipated and laundered through a foreign account in Mauritius, and transported back to Nigeria under disguise.

On Tuesday, the EFCC urged the court to permanently forfeit the funds.

After hearing the prosecution on Tuesday, Justice Ayokunle Faji ordered the final forfeiture of the money.

“Having been satisfied with the application and submission of Counsel, I hereby grant the prayer finally forfeiting the said funds in question,” the judge said, Channels Television reports.