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Court Confirms Final Seizure of $13 Million Linked to Aisha Achimugu

A Federal High Court in Abuja has approved the final forfeiture of $13 million linked to Lagos businesswoman Aisha Achimugu and her company, Oceangate Engineering Oil & Gas Ltd, to the Federal Government.

Court says EFCC showed the money came from illegal activity

Justice Emeka Nwite said the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, provided enough evidence to show that the money was connected to fraud and other unlawful activity. The court therefore ruled against Oceangate, which had asked for the money to be returned.

The judge said the company could not clearly explain where the money came from. He also rejected the claim that part of the money came from gifts to Achimugu. He noted that Achimugu did not appear in court to explain the source of the funds, and none of the people said to have given her gifts came forward to testify.

Company could not prove the money belonged to it legally

The court said Oceangate did not provide sufficient evidence to show it truly owned the money in a legally valid way. It also failed to show what business brought in the money or whether any customers paid the company.

Case started after an earlier temporary court order

The matter began after the court granted an interim forfeiture order on August 22, 2025. At the time, the EFCC told the court it had traced the money to suspicious transactions linked to the purchase of two oil blocks.

The court then asked the EFCC to publish the order in a national newspaper so that anyone with a claim to the money could come forward within 14 days and explain why it should not be permanently taken by the government.

EFCC linked the money to oil block payments

In court documents, EFCC investigator Usman Aliyu said the agency received intelligence that Oceangate used money suspected to be from illegal activity to acquire oil blocks from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC.

According to the EFCC, the company took part in the 2024 oil block licensing round and won two oil blocks, PPL 302 and PPL 3007.

The agency said the total amount required before the licences could be issued was over $37.2 million. It added that Oceangate paid part of the money through its Zenith Bank account and also moved another $7 million through Providus Bank in March 2025. The EFCC said the company paid a total of $20 million between March 20 and April 3, 2025.

EFCC said cash was moved outside proper banking channels

The EFCC alleged that to raise part of the money, Oceangate worked with unlicensed bureau de change operators and some bank officials to move $13 million in cash outside the formal banking system.

The agency said Suleiman Muhammed Chiroma was used to collect the cash in Abuja and Lagos. It also named Dantani Abubakar Hassan and Tirmizi Muhammed Usman as people allegedly involved in moving part of the money.

Agency said some funds came from Lagos contractors

The EFCC also claimed that some of the money came from contractors working on Lagos State Government projects. It said large amounts were paid into accounts belonging to Ashrab Energy and Oil Services Limited, changed into dollars, and then sent to Oceangate for payment related to the oil blocks.

The agency said there was no real business relationship between Oceangate and the contractors who sent the money.

Oceangate denied wrongdoing

Oceangate asked the court to cancel the interim forfeiture order. In its response, the company said the money came from lawful business income and gifts given to Achimugu, who is its group chief executive officer.

The company denied working with illegal forex operators or bank officials. It said Chiroma was a licensed forex agent hired to help source the dollars needed for the oil block payments.

Oceangate also denied knowing some of the people and companies mentioned by the EFCC. It insisted that the naira used to get the dollars came from legal sources and submitted audited accounts to support its case.

EFCC challenged the company’s explanation

The EFCC asked the court to reject Oceangate’s request. It argued that Iliya Wakil, the director who filed the company’s response, was only a nominal director and did not own shares in the company.

The agency also described Oceangate as a shell company used to buy oil assets with suspicious funds. It questioned the company’s audit report and said the auditor did not review the firm’s bank statements properly. The EFCC added that Achimugu herself had earlier stated that Oceangate had not handled any contract in either the public or private sector.