A bitter ownership and management dispute among Chinese investors in Crown Ceramics Nigeria Limited has escalated into multiple court cases, criminal petitions and interventions involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Nigeria Police Force, the Corporate Affairs Commission and the Office of the Vice President.
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At the centre of the dispute are four majority shareholders Zhang Kefeng, Zhang Linshuang, Liu Zhengyu and Liao Yuzhen — who collectively hold about 65 per cent of the company, and Chen Dongfeng, the company’s Managing Director, who is said to hold about eight per cent equity.
The majority shareholders allege that despite retaining the controlling stake in the company, they have effectively been shut out of its management since March 2025 and denied access to the factory, financial records, bank accounts and key corporate decisions.
They further claim that repeated requests to inspect the company’s accounts, review operational records, convene board meetings, conduct audits and receive profit distributions were either ignored or frustrated.
Dongfeng, however, has denied wrongdoing, while his lawyer, Emeka Ekweozor, maintains that the allegations are disputed and form part of pending judicial proceedings which should be resolved through the courts rather than through public accusations.
The dispute first reached the Federal High Court in Abeokuta in 2025 when the majority shareholders filed Suit No. FHC/AB/CS/64/2025, alleging that Dongfeng had taken physical control of the company despite being a minority shareholder.
Among the reliefs sought were orders restraining banks from honouring transactions allegedly initiated by Dongfeng after the company’s board reportedly passed a resolution directing financial institutions to prevent him from accessing company funds.
While that case was still pending, Dongfeng instituted another action in Lagos involving substantially similar questions surrounding the management and control of the company.
Lawyers to the majority shareholders had initially advised that the dispute be resolved internally through a board meeting, during which Dongfeng’s possible removal as a director was reportedly among the issues to be considered.
Dongfeng subsequently challenged a meeting allegedly held on March 1, 2025, contending that he was not served the statutory notice required under the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020.
In his counterclaim before the Federal High Court in Abeokuta, he asked the court to declare that, as a recognised member and director of the company, he was entitled to notice of all general and board meetings.
He also relied on Sections 243 and 245 of CAMA in asking the court to invalidate the March 1 meeting and nullify resolutions purportedly taken at the gathering, while also seeking orders restraining the majority shareholders from implementing those resolutions.
The majority shareholders, on their part, maintain that none of the pending cases contains an order expressly barring them from accessing the company or participating in its management.
In April 2026, the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory reportedly issued an interim order restraining anyone from preventing the majority shareholders from entering the company’s premises and directed the Inspector-General of Police to provide adequate security to facilitate compliance.
The Police Directorate of Legal Services subsequently recommended that the Ogun State Commissioner of Police deploy officers to implement the order.
However, counsel to the majority shareholders, Sanusi Musa, alleges that his clients remain unable to gain effective access to the factory.
Musa further alleged that Vice President Kashim Shettima, in his capacity as Chairman of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council, had directed police intervention in the dispute but that the directive had not been implemented.
Dongfeng’s lawyer rejected the attempt to litigate the dispute publicly, insisting that the issues are sub judice and should be determined through evidence before the courts.
The corporate dispute has also assumed a criminal dimension following a petition submitted to the EFCC on July 10.
In the petition, the majority shareholders accused Dongfeng and others of alleged diversion and misappropriation of company funds, fraudulent transactions, concealment of corporate records and related economic offences.
They alleged that approximately ₦40 billion may have been diverted, transferred, withdrawn or otherwise misappropriated since March 2025.
The petition alleges that company sales revenue was diverted into personal or related-company accounts and also raised questions over procurement transactions, labour costs, invoices, reimbursements, cash withdrawals and alleged cross-border transfers.
The shareholders further alleged that financial statements, inventory records and sales information had been withheld from them despite repeated requests and claimed they had received no dividends or profit distributions even though the company continued operating.
They asked the EFCC to investigate the allegations, obtain and examine the company’s financial records, trace the relevant banking transactions and recover any money found to have been unlawfully diverted.
The allegations have not been independently established.
Dongfeng, through his lawyer, categorically denied allegations of diversion, misappropriation, fraudulent transactions or concealment of corporate records, describing them as false and unsubstantiated.
The dispute has also extended to several employees of the company.
In a separate petition to the Inspector-General of Police, allegations were made that five employees unlawfully interfered with the company’s management by obstructing directors and encouraging other workers to frustrate the company’s leadership.
The petition also alleged that the employees prevented Corporate Affairs Commission officials from entering the company’s premises during an investigation linked to directives from the Office of the Vice President, and requested that police investigate and prosecute those found culpable.
The majority shareholders separately petitioned Vice President Shettima in his capacity as PEBEC Chairman, alleging that Dongfeng had stripped company assets, forged corporate documents and pledged company assets as collateral for loans allegedly obtained for another company without their knowledge or consent.
They further alleged that landed property, production lines and machinery belonging to Crown Ceramics were used to secure loans running into tens of billions of naira and that corporate ownership records were altered without authorisation.
According to the petition, the majority investors collectively put more than $25 million into the company but subsequently lost effective access to the business, with some of them reportedly returning to China after being prevented from entering the premises or participating in board meetings.
They are asking the government to guarantee their safety, restore access to the company, facilitate investigations by relevant authorities and enable them to resume participation in the management of the business.
Dongfeng’s lawyer has again rejected the accusations, insisting that they remain contested and connected to ongoing court proceedings which have not been finally determined.
The legal battle remains unresolved, with proceedings still pending before courts in Abeokuta and Lagos.
While the majority shareholders insist they have been unlawfully excluded from a company in which they hold a controlling stake, Dongfeng’s legal team maintains that disputed allegations should not be presented as established facts before the courts determine the substantive issues.
Crown Ceramics Nigeria Limited was incorporated in 2014 to engage in importing, exporting, manufacturing and general contracting.
Interested buyers are encouraged to place their orders and enquiries via:
0704 444 4777, 0704 444 4999, 0818 199 9888
Website: www.alexandernigeria.com
