A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of $13 million linked to businesswoman Aisha Achimugu and her company, Oceangate Engineering Oil & Gas Ltd, to the Federal Government.
Justice Emeka Nwite gave the ruling on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in a case involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Oceangate Engineering Oil & Gas Ltd over the ownership of the funds, which the anti-graft agency said were proceeds of fraud and other unlawful activities.
In his judgment, Justice Nwite held that Oceangate failed to convincingly explain the source of the money. He ruled that the EFCC had successfully established that the funds were proceeds of fraud and should therefore be forfeited to the government.
The court also dismissed the claim that the $13 million represented gifts allegedly received by Achimugu through the company. Justice Nwite noted that Achimugu did not appear before the court to show cause why the money should not be permanently forfeited.
He further observed that none of the individuals said to have given Achimugu the alleged gifts amounting to $13 million was called to testify in support of the claim.
According to the judge, the burden of proving the genuine ownership and lawful origin of the funds was not discharged by the applicant, thereby failing to rebut the EFCC’s case that the money was linked to fraudulent activities uncovered during its investigation.
Justice Nwite also held that Oceangate did not provide evidence of any business transaction or legitimate commercial activity that generated the funds, nor did it show proof of payments from customers.
The judge had earlier, on August 22, 2025, granted an interim forfeiture order over the $13 million and directed the EFCC to publish the order in a national newspaper for any interested person or persons to appear within 14 days and show cause why the funds should not be permanently forfeited.
In an affidavit filed before the court, EFCC investigator Usman Aliyu said the Commission acted on intelligence indicating that Oceangate Engineering Ltd allegedly used funds reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity to acquire oil blocks from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) without due process.
Aliyu stated that the $13 million used by Oceangate to pay signature bonuses for PPL 302 and PPL 3007 did not originate from any lawful or legitimate business activity, but rather represented proceeds of unlawful conduct.
He further alleged that part of the funds used by the company for the signature bonuses came from large sums transferred by a state government to contractors for the execution of projects meant for the benefit of the State.
According to the investigator, there was no contractual or business relationship between Oceangate and the contractors who transferred the public funds into the company’s account.
He added that the contractors were neither investors, directors, nor shareholders in Oceangate Engineering Oil & Gas Ltd.
However, in its counter-affidavit, Oceangate urged the court not to grant the final forfeiture order, insisting that the funds were derived partly from the company’s legitimate earnings and partly from gifts given to its Group Chief Executive Officer, Aisha Achimugu.
The EFCC, in response, asked the court to dismiss the company’s claims and uphold the forfeiture application.
