Court orders final forfeiture of Diezani’s $40m jewelry, gold phone

Lukman Olabiyi 

Hope of embattled ex-Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, of securing the release of 2,149 pieces of jewelry and a customised gold iPhone valued at $40m currently in custody of the Federal Government was dashed yesterday. 
The items were recovered from the Abuja home of the former minister by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The jewelry comprises bangles, earrings and wristwatches. The EFCC said the items are “reasonably suspected to have been acquired with and or represent proceeds of the respondent’s unlawful activities.”
In July, EFCC approached the Federal High Court, Lagos to secure temporary forfeiture of the ornaments, following an ex-parte application moved before Justice Nicholas Oweibo.
In the application, which the EFCC used to secure temporary forfeiture of the item, the commission alleged that the $40 jewelry and other items were product of unlawful activities.
The items include over 419 bangles, 315 rings, 304 earrings, 189 wristwatches, 267 necklaces and a customised gold iPhone. However, due to the court’s verdict on the item, the ex-minister, through her counsel, approached the court as well to stop final forfeiture of the property to the Federal Government by challenging the court’s jurisdiction and also the prayed the court to the earlier order.
At the last adjourned date of the matter, Diezani’s lawyer, Nnamdi Awa-Kalu, told the court that his client’s application challenging court’s jurisdiction is pursuant to Section 43 and 44 of the Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution and Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and 83 and 84 of the EFCC Act.
Awa-kalu also told the court that the application was supported with an 11- paragraph affidavit. He urged the court to refuse the EFCC’s prayer and discharge the interim order placed on his client’s items.
But the EFCC lawyer, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, urged court to discountenance Diezani’s application. He told the court that it is empowered by Section 17 and 14 of Advance Fee Fraud Act to hear and determine a case of this nature.
Oyedepo also told the court that the objections raised by Diezani’s lawyer was not an issue, as a case of such nature has been settled in an Appeal Court decision in a case between Federal Republic of Nigeria and Patience Jonathan and LA Warri Furniture Limited and some other cases of such nature.