Thursday, March 3, 2011

N3.2 BILLION SCAM: Court Orders EFCC To Seize Igbinedion’s Properties


Chief Lucky Igbinedion

ABUJA-The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, yesterday got an asset forfeiture order from a Federal High Court, Lagos, to seize properties of former Edo State governor, Chief Lucky Igbinedion, over an alleged N3.2 billion scam.

The anti-graft agency got the order to seize all properties traced to Chief Igbinedion in Benin, Lagos, Abuja and London (11 choice properties) over freshmoney laundering case filed against him. This followed an earlier order issued by Justice Adamu Hobon of the Federal High Court, Benin City, Edo State, who on February 8 directed that the former governor and six other accused be present in court on the next adjourned date, failing which he might be forced to issue a bench warrant for their arrest.

The embattled former number one citizen of Edo State may lose 11 choice properties located in prime areas of Lagos, Abuja, Benin City and London The former governor, who had been previously convicted by a Federal High Court in Enugu in 2008, where he was fined N3.5 million on a one-count charge, after an initial 191 count charge of fraud, theft, embezzlement and money laundering was amended, was declared wanted by the commission, following fresh discoveries that he allegedly diverted Edo State government’s Afribank shares valued at $6.2 million (N961million) and Access Bank Plc shares valued at $775, 000 (N120m) into his private pockets.

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