Court Orders Final Forfeiture of Private Jet Linked to Alleged Maiduguri Power Project Fraud
Court Orders Final Forfeiture of Private Jet Linked to Alleged Maiduguri Power Project Fraud
Court Orders Final Forfeiture of Private Jet Linked to Alleged Maiduguri Power Project Fraud
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has secured a final forfeiture order for a Hawker private jet linked to alleged fraud, corruption and money laundering connected to the Maiduguri Emergency Power Project.
Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, granted the order on Monday following an application filed by the EFCC.
The forfeited aircraft, identified as a Hawker 800XP with registration number 5N-AMK, was reportedly linked to alleged illicit transactions involving the Maiduguri Emergency Power Project.
In his ruling, Justice Nwite held that Valiente Jet Limited, a company linked to businessman Abdulsalam Mustapha Kachallah, failed to provide sufficient evidence showing the lawful origin of the funds used in acquiring the aircraft.
“The interested party has not demonstrated with evidence the lawful origin of the funds used to purchase the aircraft,” the judge ruled, adding that the manner in which the jet was allegedly acquired through a Bureau De Change operator strengthened suspicion surrounding the transaction.
The court had earlier granted an interim forfeiture order in November 2025 and directed the EFCC to publish the order for interested parties to challenge the action.
According to court documents, the EFCC investigation traced the acquisition of the aircraft to funds allegedly diverted from contracts awarded under the Maiduguri Emergency Power Project by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
Investigators alleged that Kachallah, who reportedly served as Chairman of the Borno State Rural Electrification Board and member of the project steering committee, used his position to unlawfully facilitate contracts involving China Machinery Engineering Company.
The EFCC said funds amounting to over $2 million were routed through Afuwa Integrated Services Limited, a Bureau De Change operator, before being transferred abroad for the purchase of the aircraft from a Brazilian company.
The anti-graft agency further alleged that forged invoices and false subcontracting claims were used to conceal the movement of the funds and disguise ownership of the aircraft.
During the proceedings, counsel to the EFCC argued that the transactions violated provisions of the ICPC Act and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, insisting that the court should lift the corporate veil surrounding the companies involved because of alleged fraud and illegality.
Counsel to Kachallah, however, opposed the application, arguing that his client and the companies involved were separate legal entities and challenged the admissibility of some documents tendered by the EFCC.
After considering arguments from both parties, Justice Nwite ruled in favour of the EFCC and ordered the permanent forfeiture of the aircraft to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Court Orders Final Forfeiture of Private Jet Linked to Alleged Maiduguri Power Project Fraud
