•Saleh Mamman
A former Minister of Power, who is serving a 75-year jail term for syphoning N22 billion, has forfeited a major Abuja property in upscale Wuse District.
An interim forfeiture order was made against four other assets, reports The Nation.
The Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the forfeiture of five additional properties linked to Alhaji Saleh Mamman, 68, who served between 1999 and 2021.
Justice James Omotosho made the order yesterday while ruling on an application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The assets are Walijam Apartments at 43, Plot 435, Lobito Crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja; Bloom Luxury Suites Nigeria Limited at 5 Amana Crescent, New Estate, Unguwan Rimi, Kaduna State; a mansion at 11 Misratah Street, Wuse 2, Abuja; another mansion at 13 Misratah Street, Wuse 2, Abuja; and A.U.A Plaza at Plot 734 Kade Street, Wuse 2, Abuja.
Justice Omotosho ordered the permanent forfeiture of Walijam Apartments.
He held that the EFCC established during Mamman’s criminal trial that the property was acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.
The judge, however, granted an interim forfeiture order in respect of the remaining four properties.
He said the EFCC had yet to conclusively establish that Mamman acquired them or had beneficial interests in them.
He directed the commission to publish the interim forfeiture order in a national newspaper within seven days to enable any interested party to appear before the court and show cause why the properties should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.
Before making the order, Justice Omotosho rejected the argument by Mamman’s lawyer, Femi Atteh (SAN), that the court had become functus officio after convicting and sentencing the former minister.
The judge held that Section 321 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) empowers the court to make restitution and forfeiture orders even after conviction.
Arguing the application, EFCC counsel, Abba Mohammed, said the court retained jurisdiction to entertain the motion despite having concluded the criminal trial.
Mohammed recalled that the court found that Mamman diverted N22 billion of the N33.8 billion alleged in the charge and noted that the commission had recovered less than N2 billion, despite earlier forfeiture orders.
He urged the court to order the forfeiture of the additional properties to recover part of the outstanding proceeds of crime.
In its judgment delivered on May 7, the court ordered the final forfeiture of several Abuja properties and funds recovered in different currencies during the EFCC’s investigation.
Justice Omotosho convicted Mamman on a 12-count money laundering charge involving the diversion of funds meant for the Zungeru and Mambilla hydroelectric power projects.
The court found that the prosecution proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the former minister diverted at least N22 billion through proxy companies and accomplices.
Following his conviction, the judge sentenced Mamman to a cumulative prison term of 75 years, with the sentences to run consecutively from the date of his arrest.
He also ordered security agencies, including INTERPOL, to arrest him wherever found and hand him over to the Nigerian Correctional Service to serve the sentence.
The court further directed Mamman to refund the outstanding balance between the assets and funds already recovered and the N22 billion established during the trial.
In the judgment, Justice Omotosho condemned the diversion of funds meant for critical electricity projects, describing it as a grave abuse of public trust.
He said the prosecution’s evidence showed that the former minister and his associates siphoned public funds intended for the Zungeru and Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Projects through proxy companies.
The judge criticised Mamman for enriching himself while Nigerians continued to endure poor electricity supply, adding that the prosecution conducted a painstaking investigation that successfully traced the diverted funds and linked them to the former minister.
Mamman was later arrested by the EFCC after weeks of surveillance following his conviction in absentia.
He was promptly taken into the correctional centre to begin his jail term.
EFCC chairman Ola Olukoyede said authorities were determined to ensure the former minister served his sentence.
“For us, getting the convict to serve his jail terms is extremely important in view of the seriousness with which we are tackling corrupt practices,” he said.
The former minister is also facing a separate criminal trial in Abuja over alleged fraud involving N31 billion.
