The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of $7 million found in the vault of Providus Bank Limited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had applied for the forfeiture, suspecting the funds to be proceeds of unlawful activity.
The $7 million was taken to Providus Bank’s Victoria Island branch in Lagos under suspicious circumstances between March 25 and 26.
The funds were kept in the bank’s vault without proper documentation and weren’t credited to any known customer account.
The EFCC investigation revealed that the Managing Director of Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited, who was suspected to be linked to the funds, denied depositing the money and instead claimed to have taken a $7 million loan from Providus Bank that remained unpaid.
Providus Bank failed to file a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), raising concerns about the legitimacy of the transaction.
Justice Emeka Nwite granted the EFCC’s application for final forfeiture, ordering the $7 million to be transferred to the Federal Government.
“The funds sought to be forfeited are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity, as they did not represent known, provable, and legitimate income of either Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited, the couriers, or officials of {name withheld} Bank Limited,” EFCC Investigator Emmanuel Okeibunor stated.
The money has now been transferred to CBN for safekeeping.
Despite court invitations, no interested party contested the forfeiture, leading to the court’s decision.
