If nothing changes at the last minute, the federal government will bring Chief Mike Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, to the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on Monday, January 26, to face charges of fraud regarding a property in London, UK.
According to a hearing notification that our reporter saw yesterday, the arraignment will take place in Courtroom 4.
The PUNCH says that Ozekhome is the only defendant in the lawsuit, and the Federal Republic of Nigeria is the plaintiff.
Osuobeni Akponimisingha, who is in charge of the High Profile Prosecution Department of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, will lead the prosecution.
The letter says that the matter “will be moved from the general cause list to the hearing paper for Monday, January 26, 2026, at 9:00 a.m.”
It It also says that if either side wants to put off the hearing, they need to go to court right away and show proof whether the request is founded on facts. People who want to make sure witnesses show up must give them adequate warning.
The ICPC filed three charges against Ozekhome on January 16.
The first count says that in August 2021, Ozekhome got House 79, Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX directly from Mr. Shani Tali in London, knowing that it was a crime under Section 13 and punishable under Section 24 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
The second count says that Ozekhome, who was a lawyer and SAN, made a fake Nigerian passport (No. A07535463) in August 2021 with Mr. Shani Tali’s name on it to back up a false claim of ownership of the property at 79 Randall Avenue. This is against Section 363 and punishable under Section 364 of the Penal Code, Laws of the FCT, Abuja.
The third count is that Ozekhome used the same fake passport to back up the ownership claim, even though he knew it was fake. This is against Section 366 and punishable under Section 364 of the Penal Code.
The case started when Mr. Olanrewaju Suraj, the head of the Human and Environmental Development Agenda, asked the ICPC for help.
The petition mentioned a British court decision that said Ozekhome and others worked with corrupt Nigerian officials to get bogus national identity certificates so they could “fraudulently claim ownership” of a house in North London.
The ICPC said it started an investigation after a London property court found Ozekhome and others guilty of fraud and fake paperwork.
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