The federal high court in Lagos has ordered the interim forfeiture of the properties linked to some Chinese nationals arrested for alleged internet fraud.
Deinde Dipeolu, the presiding judge, on Wednesday, granted the order following an ex parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The application was against Genting International Co after the EFCC alleged that the company financed the 792 members of a syndicate arrested in Lagos for alleged fraud.
Members of the syndicate include 114 Chinese nationals, 40 Filipinos, two Khazartans, one Pakistani, and one Indonesian.
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The suspects were arrested on December 10, 2024, at a seven-storey building in 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 the name “Genting International”.
Garba said the syndicate employed some Nigerian youths and started training them in romance, dating, and investment scams.
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He added those recruited were assigned a computer system each to engage in the romance scams.
The EFCC investigator said members of the syndicate were arrested in Lagos on December 10, 2024, during a sting operation.
Garba prayed that the court grant the application citing public interest.
In the ruling, Dipeolu said the application is meritorious and granted the motion.
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The judge directed the 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; two television sets; a network server; six gas cylinders; a blender; three weight scales; a spiral dough mixer; two double-burner stoves, and a dining set.
Other items are 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).
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