Theodore Orji
A federal high court in Abuja will, on May 28, hear an application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) seeking the final forfeiture of N228.4 million linked to Theodore Orji, the former Abia state governor.
Orji was the governor of Abia state from 2007 to 2015. He also served as a senator representing the Abia central between 2015 and 2023.
On January 3, Emeka Nwite, the presiding judge, ordered the interim forfeiture of N228,497,773.12 following an ex parte application filed by the EFCC.
Fadila Yusuf, the EFCC lawyer, told the court that the fund, being in the possession of Effdee Nigeria Ltd., is reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
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The lawyer added that the company allegedly conspired with Orji and some other officials to defraud the Abia state government.
The judge ordered the EFCC to publish the order on its website and in a national newspaper to allow interested parties to show cause why the fund should not be permanently forfeited within 14 days of the publication.
At the resumed court session on Monday, Yusuf informed the court that the agency had complied with the earlier order concerning the publication.
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“I wish to state that we have complied by publishing the report on the commission’s site and in a newspaper as directed,” she said.
The EFCC counsel thereafter applied for a date to move the motion on notice for final forfeiture, while the judge adjourned the matter until May 28 for motion.
Meanwhile, the former governor is facing a 16-count charge over alleged N47 billion misappropriation.
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