A federal high court in Abuja has fixed January 26 to deliver its ruling on the final forfeiture of a London property linked to the late Jeremiah Useni, a former minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), following the failure of any claimant to justify ownership of the asset within the time allowed by law.
The court took the decision after no individual or representative of Useni’s estate appeared within the statutory 14-day window to show cause why the property should not be forfeited to the federal government.
The proceedings stem from an ex parte application filed in late 2025 by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), which sought an interim forfeiture and preservation order over the disputed property on the grounds that it was allegedly acquired with proceeds of unlawful activity. On November 28, Justice Binta Nyako granted the interim forfeiture order and directed the CCB to publish the order in a national newspaper within 14 days, inviting any person or body with an interest in the property to come forward and establish lawful ownership.
The property in question is located at 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX. Those linked to the dispute include Mike Ozekhome, a senior advocate of Nigeria, and Useni, a retired lieutenant-general who died in 2024.
The ownership controversy had earlier played out before the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) Land Registration in the United Kingdom under case number REF/2023/0155, with one Tali Shani listed as the applicant and Ozekhome as the respondent. Competing claims were made by “Ms Tali Shani” and Ozekhome, with Ozekhome asserting that he received the property as a gift from “Mr Tali Shani” in 2021. Lawyers representing “Ms Shani”, however, maintained that she was the rightful owner.
During proceedings, a witness identified as “Mr Tali Shani” testified in support of Ozekhome, claiming he had powers of attorney over the property and had transferred it to the senior lawyer. He further claimed ownership of the property since 1993 and said he later appointed Useni as his property manager, describing the late general as an elder friend and business partner.
In contrast, witnesses for “Ms Tali Shani” tendered several documents, including an obituary notice, a National Identification Number card, an ECOWAS passport and a phone number, to support her claim. However, the tribunal ruled that all the documents presented on her behalf were fake.
In a decisive ruling, the tribunal dismissed all the competing claims, holding that neither “Mr Tali Shani” nor “Ms Tali Shani” existed.
Meanwhile, the federal government has filed criminal charges against Ozekhome over alleged forgery and use of false documents connected to the disputed London property. The three-count charge, marked FCT/HC/CR/010/2026, was filed before a federal high court in Abuja by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on behalf of the attorney-general of the federation.
In the charge, the ICPC alleged that Ozekhome, sometime in August 2021, directly received the London property from a person he knew to be fictitious, an act said to constitute a felony under the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act. The commission further accused him of making a false Nigerian passport in the name of “Mr Shani Tali” to support his claim of ownership of the property, and of dishonestly using the document as genuine despite allegedly knowing it was false.
The court is expected to rule later this month on whether the property should be finally forfeited to the federal government.