The Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice Inyang Ekwo, has ordered the final forfeiture of Sunflower Hotel Ltd, a multi-million-naira property in Kaduna State linked to former Vice-Chancellor of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Prof. Vincent Tenebe.
The court mandated that the property be surrendered to the Nigerian government, as it is suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
The forfeiture order followed a motion filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on June 21, moved by EFCC counsel F.O. Dibang.
Justice Ekwo ruled, “Order is hereby made forfeiting the property set out in the attached schedule, found in possession of the respondent, as properties reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities, to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
An interim forfeiture order was initially issued in February, with the EFCC instructed to publicize the order to allow potential claimants to step forward. However, no claims were made within the designated period.
According to an affidavit from EFCC operative Dare Opeyemi, received intelligence in December 2022 indicated a conspiracy involving the theft and diversion of public funds.
The investigation implicated Monday Onyeme, former Chairman of the Delta State Board of Internal Revenue, and Adamu Danlami, who remains at large.
The probe revealed that Onyeme diverted NOUN funds to various companies, including Crossbill International Ltd.
Further investigations linked Prof. Tenebe to these diversions, showing that over N275 million traced to his account was used to fund the construction of Sunflower Hotel Ltd. The hotel property had been acquired from his brother-in-law.
With no opposition from claimants, the EFCC argued that the final forfeiture was in the public interest. The case, numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/33/2024, officially names the EFCC as the applicant and Sunflower Hotel Ltd as the respondent.
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