The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has disclosed the rationale behind its decision to get an interim forfeiture order, to seize eight landed properties allegedly belonging to the Director, Finance and Accounts in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), General Jafaru Mohammed.
The Commission said its resolution was triggered by a tipoff that a serving top military officer had acquired high-profile properties, and floated companies that owned similar assets.
Explaining in a document, filed before the Federal High Court, Abuja, the EFCC said upon preliminary findings by a special task force constituted in its Kano office to investigate the information, the team discovered that Gen. Mohammed, who joined the Nigerian Army in October 1993, could not have legitimately earned enough to acquire the properties allegedly linked to him.
On March 9, 2021, Justice Folashade Giwa-Ogunbanjo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, granted an ex-parte application brought by the EFCC for an interim order of forfeiture over the identified property.
In her ruling, Justice Giwa-Ogunbanjo, said: “an order of interim forfeiture is made forfeiting to the Federal Government of Nigeria all the assets and properties listed in the schedule to this motion.”
The judge also ordered the EFCC to publicise the order of interim forfeiture to invite “any person(s) or body(ies) who may have interest in the assets and properties listed in the schedule to show cause within 14 days of such publication why a final order of forfeiture to the Federal Government of Nigeria should not be made.”
The affected properties include a house on plot no 7, Gods own Estate, Road, 1, Wamba District, Abuja; a fenced plot at No 1, Jubril Aminu Crescent, Katampe Extension Abuja, and a plot of land along Kubwa Express Road, directly opposite Abuja Model City Gate, Abuja.
Others are a house (Block SD 22 House 2, Road 5, Kabusa Garden Estate, Abuja; House No 15, 21 Crescent, 2% Avenue Gwarimpa Estate, Abuja; House No 3, Liverpool Close, Sun City Estate, Abuja; House No 532, Mainstreet, Sun City Estate Abuja, and House No 25, Osaka Street, Sun City Estate Abuja.
Meanwhile, in the document submitted to the court, the EFCC stated that. Gen Mohammed has earned not more than N73,402,644.29 since he was enlisted into the Nigerian Army in 1993, and could not have been able to legitimately acquire the properties.
The document read: “Upon receipt of the intelligence, investigation commenced in earnest whereby letters of investigation activities were written to Abuja Geographic Information System (AGIS), Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Jaiz Bank Plc, GT Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Pic, Keystone Bank Plc and Unity Bank Plc, amongst others requesting for account opening packages and statement of accounts as well as the registration status of the companies listed.
“A team of operatives visited the properties to verify the existence as well as the location of the properties. The team interviewed General Jafaru Mohammed and recorded his statement regarding his source of wealth.
General Jafaru Mohammed is serving military personnel and currently the Director of Finance and Accounts in the Office of the National Security Adviser. Before his current posting, he served in the Finance and Accounts Departments of the Nigerian Defence Academy and National Defence College.
“The said Jafaru Mohammed admitted having and running many filing stations while being a public servant. Clearly, in view of the properties so far discovered, there is no way the legitimate earnings of Brigadier General Jafaru Mohammed could have funded the purchase of these properties.
“Brigadier General Jafaru owns two bureaus de change (BDC) companies, namely Ummatuhabibullah BDC Ltd and Tahir BB BDC with his wives and children as shareholders and signatories to the accounts of the companies.”
EFCC