Justice A.O. Owoeye of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has issued a final forfeiture order for the sum of N1,168,602,877.44 (One Billion, One Hundred and Sixty-Eight Million, Six Hundred and Two Thousand, Eight Hundred and Seventy-Seven Naira, Forty-Four Kobo), $392,818.01 (Three Hundred and Ninety-Two Thousand, Eight Hundred and Eighteen United States Dollars, One Cent), and £35,070 (Thirty-Five Thousand, Seventy Pounds Sterling) recovered from Muiz Tijani Adeyinka, a former employee of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN).
The funds have now been permanently forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN).
The ruling followed a motion filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), supported by an affidavit sworn by EFCC investigator Isah Yusuf Nadabo.
Justice Owoeye had earlier granted an interim forfeiture order on November 27, 2024, directing that the order be published in a national newspaper to allow any interested party to contest the forfeiture.
During the final forfeiture hearing on Monday, February 3, 2025, EFCC counsel Zeenat Atiku argued that the commission received a petition from First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) on March 26, 2024, alleging fraudulent transactions across multiple bank accounts.
Investigations revealed that Adeyinka, the principal suspect, was a former First Bank staff member and the Managing Director/CEO of Golden Sieve Logistics Ltd., Golden Sieve Properties Ltd., and Golden Sieve Motors Ltd. All three companies were registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
As a staff member attached to the bank’s Settlement Office, Adeyinka allegedly exploited his privileged access to manipulate settlement accounts, creating fictitious domiciliary inflows and diverting the Naira equivalent to himself and his associates.
To disguise the illicit proceeds, Adeyinka converted the stolen funds into U.S. dollars and cryptocurrency, including USDT, which he then transferred to his personal dollar account and crypto wallet.
Atiku further informed the court that the interim forfeiture order had been published in The Punch newspaper on December 5, 2024, in compliance with the court’s directive.
After reviewing the EFCC’s application and supporting documents, Justice Owoeye ruled in favor of the final forfeiture, declaring that the motion had merit and was duly granted.
