FCT High Court strikes out ICPC’s forgery charges against Mike Ozekhome

A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) sitting in Maitama has struck out a three-count charge filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) against prominent lawyer Mike Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

The ICPC had, on January 16, instituted charges bordering on alleged forgery against Ozekhome. However, the case was subsequently taken over by the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) on January 26.

At the previous adjourned hearing, Rotimi Oyedepo, counsel representing the AGF, assured the court that the matter would be prosecuted with “the highest standard of efficiency, effectiveness, diligence and compliance with due process of law.”

But at Tuesday’s resumed session, which had been scheduled for Ozekhome’s arraignment, Oyedepo moved an application seeking to withdraw the charges.

He told the court that the AGF’s office required additional time to review and consolidate issues arising from investigations conducted by multiple agencies, noting that such a step would help strengthen the case.

Following the application, the presiding judge, Justice Peter Kekemeke, struck out the suit.

Ozekhome had been accused of knowingly presenting forged documents, including a Nigerian international passport, to support his claim of ownership of a property located at 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX, during proceedings before the UK tribunal.

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The alleged offences were said to have been committed in August 2021 within the Maitama district of Abuja, thereby placing the matter under the jurisdiction of the FCT High Court.

The dispute stemmed from proceedings before the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) Land Registration in the United Kingdom, filed under case number REF/2023/0155.

The matter involved competing ownership claims over the London property between Ozekhome and an applicant identified as Tali Shani.

Ozekhome had maintained that he received the property as a gift in 2021 from a man identified as “Mr Tali Shani.” In support of his claim, a witness bearing the same name testified that he had held Powers of Attorney over the property and had transferred ownership to the senior lawyer.

“The witness further claimed to have owned the property since 1993 and to have appointed the late Jeremiah Useni, a retired lieutenant-general, as property manager, describing him as an “elder friend and business partner.”

On the other hand, representatives of “Ms Tali Shani” tendered several documents, including an obituary announcement, National Identification Number (NIN) card, ECOWAS passport, and phone records, to assert ownership of the property.

However, the tribunal reportedly found the documents presented on behalf of “Ms Tali Shani” to be fraudulent. In its ruling, the tribunal dismissed all claims, concluding that neither “Mr” nor “Ms” Tali Shani existed. It further held that the real owner of the property had operated under a false identity and was, in fact, the late Useni.

With the charges now struck out by the FCT High Court, attention may shift to whether the AGF’s office will refile the case after completing its review and consolidation of investigative findings.