Housing ministry director, others arraigned over land grab in Ikeja GRA

The Inspector-General of Police has arraigned Julius Eshiet, Al-Trade Agencies Limited, and Alabi Collins, a director in the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, before the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja over alleged forgery, illegal occupation, and forceful takeover of land in Ikeja GRA.

The defendants are facing a 13-count charge before Justice Akinwunmi Idowu in connection with a disputed property measuring 9,425 square yards at Block C, Plots 30 and 37, No. 6 (formerly 37A) Ajisafe Street, GRA Ikeja.

According to court filings dated September 1, 2025, prosecuting counsel Rotshang Dimka said the case followed a July 2024 petition by Viagem Property and Investment Limited, accusing the defendants and one Yemi Kazeem Balogun of land grabbing, malicious damage, and forgery.

Viagem stated that the property was originally leased in 1961 by the defunct Western Region Government to the Nigerian Enamelware Company, later assigned in 1993 to Western Metal Products Company Limited (WEMPCO), and eventually sold to Viagem in 2019.

The company said it enjoyed uninterrupted possession until 2021, when the defendants allegedly stormed the premises with thugs and men claiming to be police officers, evicted its staff, and destroyed a government “under investigation” signpost placed by the Lagos State Task Force.

During investigation, Collins argued that the land was federal property, relying on a 1946 Gazette, a 2021 allocation to Al-Trade Agencies, and documents including a 2003 application form, lease offer, and a Certificate of Occupancy purportedly signed by former Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola.

Police investigators, however, reported that records showed WEMPCO and later Viagem had consistently paid land use charges to the Lagos State Government, with no evidence of federal ownership prior to 2021.

Justice Idowu adjourned the case to September 12, 2025, for further hearing.

Eshiet was remanded in custody at the Lagos State Police Command, while Collins’s lawyer sought adjournment on medical grounds.