The federal high court in Lagos has ordered the final forfeiture of digital assets worth $222,729 (in USDT) seized from some Chinese nationals.
Gatekeepers News reports that Justice Alexander Owoeye issued the order on Monday following an application by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
According to EFCC, the assets were traced to a syndicate of 792 suspected fraudsters involved in cryptocurrency and romance scams.
An earlier interim forfeiture was granted in February. The court directed the EFCC to publish a notice in a national newspaper, giving interested parties 14 days to present reasons why the assets should not be permanently forfeited.
During Monday’s proceedings, EFCC counsel Zeenat Atiku presented an affidavit sworn by investigating officer Muazu Abdulrahman.
The affidavit revealed that the syndicate operated through a Nigerian-registered firm, Genting International Co. Limited (GICL), which received over ₦2.26 billion in its Union Bank account between April and December 2024.
The EFCC’s investigation traced major fund inflows to two cryptocurrency vendors, Chukwuemeka Okeke and Alhassan Aminu Garba.
They admitted receiving USDT transactions totaling $2.39 million from the syndicate through peer-to-peer trading and provided wallet addresses used in the transfers.
After reviewing the application, Justice Owoeye approved the final forfeiture of the digital assets to the Nigerian federal government.
