The Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday, May 22, 2026, ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to lift all restrictions placed on N220 million and properties linked to former Acting Accountant-General of the Federation, Chukwunyere Anamekwe Nwabuoku.
Justice Umar Mohammed gave the order in a ruling on suit FHC/ABJ/177/2024, filed under the EFCC’s non-conviction final forfeiture process.
The EFCC had sought final forfeiture of the assets, alleging they were proceeds of unlawful activity. But the court held that the request amounted to an abuse of court process.
Justice Mohammed noted that the assets were already subject of a pending criminal trial before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which had reached an advanced stage.
He held that it would be improper to grant final forfeiture while the criminal trial was ongoing, adding that justice would not be served in the circumstances.
The judge upheld the objection raised by Nwabuoku, set aside the interim forfeiture order made on March 4, 2024, and directed the EFCC to immediately remove all restrictions and embargoes on the listed assets.
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He further ordered the Commission to refrain from any action inconsistent with Nwabuoku’s ownership rights pending the conclusion of the criminal case.
The ruling comes amid a separate prosecution of Nwabuoku before Justice Omotosho, where he was convicted on March 23, 2026, on nine counts of money laundering involving about N868.4 million.
In that case, the court also ordered final forfeiture of assets valued at about N1.9 billion, including shares, cash and a five-bedroom duplex linked to him.
Court records show Nwabuoku had earlier refunded N220 million to the EFCC and surrendered a property during investigations.
In the forfeiture case, the EFCC also traced funds to several firms, including Temeeo Synergy Concept Limited, Turge Global Investment Limited, Laptev Bridge Limited and Arafura Transnational Afro Ltd, alleging they were proceeds of fraud.
However, Nwabuoku’s lawyers argued the assets were already tied to a pending criminal trial, making the forfeiture application premature.
The court agreed, struck out the application, and restored control of the assets to Nwabuoku pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings.