Federal High Court in Lagos has issued an interim forfeiture order on properties linked to some Chinese nationals arrested for alleged internet fraud.
Gatekeepers News reports that Deinde Dipeolu, the presiding judge, granted the order on Wednesday, following an ex parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The application was against Genting
International Co which the antigraft agency alleged funded a 792-member syndicate involved in cyber fraud.
The syndicate reportedly included over 100 Chinese nationals, alongside Filipinos, Kazakhs, a Pakistani, and an Indonesian. They were apprehended on December 10, 2024, in a seven-storey building on Victoria Island, Lagos.
In an 18-paragraph affidavit filed to support the application, Kaina Garba, an EFCC investigator, said he received intelligence about a syndicate involved in money laundering and computer fraud allegedly led by Chinese nationals operating under Genting International.
He noted that Nigerian youths were recruited and trained to operate the scams using individual computer systems.
The EFCC investigator said members of the syndicate were arrested in Lagos on December 10, 2024, during a sting operation.
He prayed that the court grant the application citing public interest.
Justice Dipeolu ruled in favor of the EFCC’s request, describing the application as justified.
The judge directed EFCC to publish the order in a national newspaper for interested parties to show cause within 14 days why the assets should not be permanently forfeited to the federal government.
The forfeited items are 194 routers; 205 sofas;
501 double-step bunks; 754 mattresses; 40 refrigerators; 10 microwaves; two whiteboards; 16 inverter batteries; 14 inverters; 43 CPUs/ monitors; a ring light; two fuel tanks; a transformer; seven vehicles; 411 deep freezers; 13 electric kettles; 21 UPS units; a toaster; an air fryer; 558 office tables; and two television sets.
Other items are a network server; six gas cylinders; a blender; three weight scales; a spiral dough mixer; two double-burner stoves, and a dining set; 1,596 computers/laptops; 4,091 mobile phones; 350 foreign SIM cards, and 3,399 Nigerian SIM cards of various telecommunications providers (1,122 MTN SIM cards, 316 9mobile SIM cards, 1,277 Airtel SIM cards, and 684 Glo SIM cards).
