Court forfeits ₦5.28bn Abuja housing lands linked to alleged $65m fraud

The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the permanent forfeiture of two parcels of land in the Federal Capital Territory valued at ₦5.28 billion, which were originally designated for the Goodluck Jonathan Legacy Model Housing Estate.

Justice Mohammed Umar granted the order following an application filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). The application was not contested by the defence counsel, Hassan Liman, SAN.

In his ruling, the judge directed the ICPC to supervise the completion of 962 housing units on the forfeited lands in collaboration with the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), the sole respondent in the suit. He further ordered that the completed houses be properly allocated to beneficiaries.

The forfeited properties include Plot No. 5, Cadastral Zone D12, Kaba District, Abuja, measuring 122,015.80 square metres and valued at ₦1.944 billion, and Plot No. 4 in the same zone, measuring 157,198.30 square metres and valued at ₦3.34 billion. The court held that the lands were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity.

Justice Umar also instructed the ICPC to formally hand over the properties to the FMBN and to establish a joint committee with the bank to oversee the completion of the housing project.

In the ruling delivered on December 11 and made available to journalists on Tuesday, the judge noted that the court had earlier granted an interim forfeiture of the lands on July 9, pending the determination of the substantive suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1124/2025.

According to the ICPC, the lands were allocated by the Federal Capital Territory Administration for the construction of 962 residential units under the National Housing Fund scheme but were allegedly diverted.

An affidavit sworn by an ICPC officer, Iliya Marcus, revealed that the FMBN engaged Good Earth Power Nigeria Limited to execute the project after securing a $65 million loan from Ecobank, with an 18-month completion timeline. Investigations showed that the bank released an initial ₦3.785 billion in November 2012 and later disbursed the full project sum, despite the developer not being registered with the Real Estate Developers Association, a key project requirement.

The commission further disclosed that no housing units were constructed on the site and that the developer allegedly attempted to sell the land to members of the public.

Counsel to the ICPC, Osuobeni Akponimisingha, told the court that although the developer is facing trial in a separate case, the forfeiture application was aimed at securing the properties for the Federal Government and the Nigerian public.

Justice Umar questioned the decision to release the entire project funds without evidence of work done and adjourned the matter until October 27 for a compliance report.