A’Court affirms forfeiture of General Atewe’s assets to FG, dismisses appeal

By Innocent Anaba

The Court of Appeal sitting in Lagos Division, Wednesday, affirmed the judgment of a Federal High Court in Lagos ordering the final forfeiture of multiple assets linked to retired Major General Emmanuel Atewe (retd) to the Federal Government, holding that his appeal lacked merit.

In a unanimous judgment delivered virtually via Zoom, the appellate court, presided over by Justice Boloukuromo Ugo, resolved all three issues raised in the appeal in favour of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and dismissed the appeal in its entirety.

The appeal challenged the May 5, 2023 judgment of the Federal High Court, by Justice C. Aneke, which granted the EFCC’s application for the final forfeiture of several properties, cash and investment assets alleged to be proceeds of unlawful activities.

In its judgment, the Court of Appeal held that Section 123 of the Armed Forces Act (AFA) and the decision in General Jafaru Muhammed v. EFCC, relied upon by Atewe, were inapplicable to his case.

The court held that while General Jafaru was a serving military officer, Atewe is a retired military officer who had admitted that fact in his affidavit to show cause before the trial court.

The appellate court further held that Section 123 of the Armed Forces Act applies only to serving military personnel and therefore could not avail the appellant.

The court also held that the forfeiture proceedings before the Federal High Court were sui generis, being proceedings directed solely against assets and not against the person of the appellant.

It found that Atewe failed to sufficiently show how he genuinely acquired the assets sought to be forfeited, noting that his explanation merely referred to unspecified honoraria without providing adequate particulars or evidence linking those payments to the acquisition of the properties.

The appellate court further rejected Atewe’s argument that the institution of civil forfeiture proceedings while criminal charges involving substantially the same transactions were pending amounted to an abuse of judicial process.

It held that the pendency of a criminal prosecution does not preclude the EFCC from pursuing civil forfeiture proceedings under the law.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal and affirmed the judgment of Justice Aneke forfeiting the assets to the Federal Government.

The assets forfeited include N3.97 million in cash, Plot MF62 at the Outer Northern Expressway, Abuja, Plot No. 1228, Jahi, Abuja, Plots CP6386 and CP6387 at Sabon Lugbe East Extension Layout, Airport Road, Abuja, one-hectare parcels of land in Kuje District, a 50-hectare farmland at Gaube Farmland Extension II Layout, Kuje, a parcel of land at Commercial Layout, Yenagoa Gardens, Bayelsa State, 30,000 MTN Shares held by Stanbic IBTC Asset Management Limited, and Plot No. CP10, Sector Centre B Layout, Kuje, Abuja.

The post A’Court affirms forfeiture of General Atewe’s assets to FG, dismisses appeal appeared first on Vanguard News.