The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of two properties linked to a staff member of Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS), Aminu Garunbaba, to the Federal Government over alleged money laundering.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu ordered the final forfeiture in his judgment on Thursday, following a case instituted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC).
The properties forfeited are “a four bedroom terrace maisonette with BQ at Barumark Groove Estate, Plot 667, Cadastral Zone, BO3, Wuye District, Abuja” and a “property, located at No. 5, Lodge Road, Kano in Kano State,” according to EFCC depositions reported by NAN.
These properties were said to have been purchased by Garunbaba in the name of MYZ Venture among other things.
EFCC allegations against the FIRS Staff
- The EFCC had, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/876/2021 filed by Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, sued Aminu Sidi Garunbaba alone.
- In a motion on notice, the anti-graft agency prayed for a final order of the court “forfeiting the properties described in Schedule 1 which were found by the commission on the respondent as properties reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.”
“The properties sought to be attached and forfeited are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities,” the EFCC stressed, referencing an earlier interim order of the court over the said property.
“No cause or sufficient cause has been shown why the properties under the interim forfeiture should not be finally forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria,” Iheanacho submitted.
- In the affidavit in support of the motion deposed to by an operative of the EFCC, Apagu Wudah, the officer said he was part of the team assigned to investigate an intelligence report bordering on criminal conspiracy, stealing, abuse of office and money laundering among some FIRS Staff.
Wudah said, “The investigation revealed that between 2017 and 2018, Garunbaba and some of the staff of the FIRS conspired amongst themselves and obtained millions of Naira from the FIRS under the guise of Duty Tour Allowances (DTA) which they never travelled for.”
“The respondent (Garunbaba) not only directly applied and received DTA payment for non-existing trips from FIRS, other staff who received these fraudulent payments also handed over to him part of their own money,” he added.
- The investigator alleged that between 2017 and 2018, Garunbaba received the sum of N341,971,960.00 from the misappropriated DTA payments and personally converted to his use the sum of N148, 079,450.00 and invested it in properties.
“The respondent gave details of the various funds he received in the fraudulent scheme and how he utilised some of them in his extra l-judicial statements to the applicant,” he added.
But the defense team filed a preliminary objection, accusing the EFCC of failing to discharge the burden to prove against the defendant.
Court Judgement
- Passing his judgment, Justice Obiora held that Garunbaba failed to show the instrument he used to purchase the property.
- Justice Egwuatu held that the respondent “also failed to show any reasonable cause that the funds used in purchasing the property is from his legitimate earnings.”
“A person cannot be allowed to benefit from illegitimate acts,” he added.
- The judge dismissed the preliminary objection of the defense, observing that the staff had confessed to giving out millions in cash from the FIRS office to some persons.
The court subsequently forfeited the property to the federal government.
