The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the temporary freezing of a Fidelity Bank account belonging to Mars Aviation Limited over allegations of money laundering connected to phony contract payments from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
Gatekeepers News reports that the order was granted by Justice Musa Liman following an ex parte motion filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The motion, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1299/2025, was filed on July 1 and moved by EFCC counsel Geraldine Ofulue. She informed the court that the account was under investigation for alleged criminal misappropriation and money laundering. Ofulue urged the court to freeze the account pending the conclusion of the probe.
In his ruling delivered on September 22, Justice Liman held that the EFCC’s application had merit and consequently approved the request.
The court empowered the EFCC chairman, Ola Olukoyede, or any other authorised officer to instruct the managing director of Fidelity Bank to freeze the account. According to court documents, the account in question—number 5250350283 (C03651082)—is held by Mars Aviation Limited.
An affidavit supporting the motion was deposed to by Abdulganiyu Olayide, an EFCC investigator attached to the commission’s special duties committee.
Olayide stated that his team was assigned to investigate the case following intelligence reports that NNPCL made several payments to Mars Aviation for purported contracts that were “phoney” and granted in violation of the Procurement Act.
He said preliminary findings revealed that large sums of money were paid into the company’s Fidelity Bank account by NNPCL in multiple instalments.
The EFCC investigator maintained that the freezing of the account was essential to preserve the funds and prevent further transactions while the investigation continues.
Olayide said, “That I make this affidavit in good faith, believing its contents to be true and correct and in accordance with the Oaths Act.”
Reports indicate that Mars Aviation Limited is allegedly owned by Abdullahi Bashir-Haske, the founder and group managing director of AA&R Group, who is married to the daughter of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
