The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of a London property linked to the estate of the late former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, General Jeremiah Useni (rtd), to the Federal Government of Nigeria, in what the Code of Conduct Bureau has described as the first-ever international asset forfeiture involving a high-value property in the United Kingdom.
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The CCB has initiated steps to physically recover the property at No. 79 Randall Avenue, Neasden, London NW2 7SX, formally requesting the Attorney-General of the Federation to activate Mutual Legal Assistance mechanisms between Nigeria and the UK to secure recognition and enforcement of the Nigerian court order within British jurisdiction.
The forfeiture follows a net worth analysis by the CCB’s Financial Investigation and Forensic Accounting Unit which found that the late minister’s declared income while in public office was grossly insufficient to account for the acquisition of the property, while a UK tribunal confirmed that Useni purchased it under a fictitious name to conceal his identity as the true owner.
Meanwhile, Senior Advocate of Nigeria Mike Ozekhome and the late minister’s son, Ponfa Useni, are standing trial on 12 charges of forgery and impersonation at the FCT High Court over their alleged roles in a scheme to claim the same property using a fake Nigerian passport in the name of a fictitious person.
The property at the centre of the case is a house located at No. 79 Randall Avenue, Neasden, London NW2 7SX. According to the CCB’s investigation, the property was acquired in 1993 by General Useni during his tenure as FCT Minister under the military regime of the late General Sani Abacha.
The CCB’s investigation revealed that Useni purchased the property under a fictitious name in order to conceal his identity as the beneficial owner and suppress official documentation linking him to the asset.
This finding was corroborated by the First-Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) of the United Kingdom, which in Suit REF/2023/0155 delivered a judgment confirming that the late Useni was the true owner of the property, having purchased it under an alias intended to conceal his identity.
The CCB conducted a detailed net worth analysis using salary data obtained from the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission — the government agency responsible for determining the remuneration of political, public, and judicial officers.
The analysis, carried out by the CCB’s Financial Investigation and Forensic Accounting Unit, found that Useni’s declared income at the time of the property’s acquisition was grossly insufficient to account for the purchase.
“There is a substantial unexplained funds gap, indicating that the funds used for the acquisition must have come from other, undisclosed, or undeclared sources. This gap constitutes a strong circumstantial indicator of potential fraud, unreported income, or illicit accumulation of wealth,” the CCB investigator, Raji Rasaq, stated in his affidavit.
The CCB also reviewed the late minister’s asset declaration forms, in which he had declared ownership of the property — even though it was purchased under a fictitious name.
The CCB initiated forfeiture proceedings in November 2025 through an ex parte application before Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court, Abuja. The respondents named in the proceedings were the administrators of the estate of the late General Useni, the executors of his estate, and the property itself.
Justice Nyako granted an interim order for the preservation of the property on November 28, 2025, and directed that the order be published in a newspaper, allowing any person or authority to indicate interest and file the necessary process to show why the property should not be forfeited to the Federal Government.
The 14-day period for interested parties to come forward lapsed without any response.
“No person or entity has come forward to claim the property or establish any legitimate interest,” the CCB reported to the court in an application filed on December 22, 2025, through its lawyer Sufyan Ahmad.
The CCB relied on Sections 17 and 19 of the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act 2022 in seeking the final forfeiture order.
The Federal High Court subsequently ordered the final forfeiture of the property to the Federal Government.
The CCB described the court’s judgment as “a historic breakthrough that marks a new era in the nation’s asset recovery framework.”
“The successful forfeiture sends a clear and compelling message that assets acquired through the breach of public trust are no longer safe, even when concealed overseas,” the bureau stated in a statement issued by the Acting Director, Proceeds of Crime Recovery and Management, Fatima Ahmed-Kere, on behalf of CCB Chairman Abdullahi Bello.
The bureau attributed the achievement to its renewed strategic focus on intelligence-led enforcement and global cooperation.
“This landmark case signals a new phase in the bureau’s asset recovery structure in which accountability follows illicit wealth across jurisdictions,” the CCB stated.
The CCB disclosed that it has formally requested the Attorney-General of the Federation to activate Mutual Legal Assistance mechanisms between Nigeria and the UK to physically recover the asset and repatriate its proceeds.
The MLA activation is intended to secure the recognition and enforcement of the Nigerian court order within the UK, vest the property in the appropriate authority, facilitate its lawful disposal, and ensure the repatriation of proceeds to Nigeria in line with international recovery frameworks.
The process of enforcing a Nigerian forfeiture order in the UK requires cooperation between both countries’ legal systems and may involve proceedings before UK courts to recognise and give effect to the Nigerian judgment. The success of this process will depend on the strength of the bilateral legal cooperation framework between Nigeria and the UK.
The property gained additional public attention after what the CCB described as a “scandalous, failed effort” by Senior Advocate Mike Ozekhome to claim ownership.
In February 2026, the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation re-arraigned Ozekhome and Ponfa Useni before the FCT High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on 12 amended charges of forgery and impersonation.
The re-arraignment followed an amendment of the charges initially filed against Ozekhome as the sole defendant, with the amended version introducing Ponfa Useni as the second defendant.
According to the prosecution, Ozekhome and Ponfa Useni conspired in 2020 — alongside the late General Useni — to create a false Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 bearing the fictitious name “Tali Shani,” purporting it to have been issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service, in order to claim the London property.
The prosecution alleged that Ponfa Useni falsely personated “Tali Shani” and, under this assumed identity, created a Power of Attorney. Ozekhome allegedly helped Ponfa impersonate the fictitious person and together they created a fake “Irrevocable Power of Attorney” to enable Ozekhome to claim the property.
They were also accused of receiving £18,000 in rent from the property and of making a false document titled “RE: REQUEST FOR AUTHENTICATION OF NIGERIAN PASSPORT NO. A07535463 BELONGING TO MR. TALI SHANI” dated May 4, 2023, to further the scheme.
Both defendants pleaded not guilty to the 12 charges and were granted bail at N10 million bond each. The offences are charged under various provisions of the Penal Code Law including Sections 83, 84, 96, 179, 363, 364, and 366.
The trial is adjourned to April 15, 2026.
General Jeremiah Useni served as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory during the military regime of General Sani Abacha from 1993 to 1998. He later entered civilian politics, serving as a senator. He passed away in France in January 2025.
His acquisition of the London property during his time as FCT Minister under Abacha — one of the most notoriously corrupt military regimes in Nigerian history and his purchase of it under a fictitious name, form the basis of the CCB’s conclusion that the property constituted proceeds of unlawful activity.
The case carries significant implications for Nigeria’s anti-corruption framework on multiple levels.
It is the first time the CCB has successfully used the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act 2022 to secure the forfeiture of a property located outside Nigeria, establishing a precedent for future international asset recovery efforts.
The case demonstrates that the death of a public officer does not extinguish the government’s right to recover assets suspected to have been illegally acquired — the forfeiture proceedings were initiated and concluded after General Useni’s death.
The activation of Mutual Legal Assistance with the UK to enforce the forfeiture order represents a test of the effectiveness of international cooperation mechanisms in recovering stolen assets a long-standing challenge for Nigeria and other developing countries.
The CCB pledged to remain resolute in enforcing asset declaration laws and preventing the abuse of public office, describing the case as the beginning of a new phase in which “accountability follows illicit wealth across jurisdictions.”
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