Trials of Real Estate Developer, Lawyers Stall as Lagos AG Fails to Produce New Police Report

The failure of the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro, to produce the report of a fresh police investigation into allegations of forgery and willful property damage against a real estate developer and two lawyers on Monday stalled their ongoing trial.

The defendants, Alex Ochonogor, Ademola Owolabi, and Adebayo Akeju, were arraigned before Justice Sherifat Sonaike of the Lagos State High Court sitting at Tafawa Balewa Square over their alleged involvement in forging land documents and demolishing a property in the Lekki area of the state.

The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges, and they were granted bail by the trial judge.

At the court’s last sitting on October 14, 2025, the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecutions, Dr Babajide Martins, informed the court that the case would not proceed, as the Attorney-General had directed the police to reinvestigate the case.

He, therefore, requested an adjournment so that the process could be completed.

Although this move was strongly opposed by the defence lawyers, Justice Sonaike adjourned the matter to January 12, 2026, to allow the police to communicate with the prosecution and submit a further report.

However, at the resumed hearing on Monday, Martins again informed the judge that the prosecution was still awaiting the police report.

Due to this development and the absence of one of the accused persons, the judge was compelled to adjourn the trial to March 9 for trial and the presentation of the report.

At the previous court session, Senior Advocate of Nigeria Tayo Oyetibo accused the Lagos State Attorney-General of abusing the court process through his actions.

Oyetibo, counsel for the third defendant, Alex Ochonogor, opposed the prosecution’s attempt to reinvestigate a matter already in court, describing it as a violation of due process.

He stated, “We see this as oppression. It is an abuse of the court process. You cannot file a matter, arraign defendants, and then ask the police to reinvestigate it.

“The case shouldn’t have come before the court in the first place if it had not been properly investigated,” the senior lawyer maintained.

While he did not object to the adjournment itself, he insisted that the prosecution’s actions were improper, noting that the police had already concluded multiple investigations into the matter.

The Lagos State Ministry of Justice had, in a letter dated August 22, 2025, and signed by the Director of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, Adeshola Adekunle-Bello, requested that the police conduct further investigations into the allegations

This request followed a second police report signed by Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Dahiru, which exonerated Ochonogor and Owolabi of any wrongdoing

In the letter, the DPP directed the police to reopen the case by interrogating additional witnesses and reevaluating key documents.

The letter was addressed to the Assistant Inspector General of Police at the Force Criminal Investigation Department Annexe in Ikoyi.

The Ministry specifically requested that the investigation team interrogate key witnesses, including Dr Obidigwe Eze and Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, a former Chief Security Officer to the late General Sani Abacha, based on new developments in the case.

However, not satisfied with the first police report that led to the indictment, Ochonogor and his lawyer filed a petition with the Commissioner of Police, alleging compromised investigation, abuse of public office, shoddy investigation, and witch-hunting.

The police report, which has already been forwarded to the Lagos State Directorate of Public Prosecution for necessary action, found that none of the documents were forged and that the demolition of the structure on the disputed land had been authorised by the relevant government agency and officials.

Some findings from the investigation include: “On July 12, 1994, the Lagos State Government, by a Certificate of Occupancy registered as 36/361994w, allocated a parcel of land known and described as Block 133, Plot 10, Lekki Peninsula Scheme 1 to Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, who was then the Chief Security Officer to General Sani Abacha, the Head of State.”

Some of the investigation’s findings are: “That on 12th July, 1994, Lagos State Government, by a Certificate of Occupancy registered as 36/361994w, allocated a Parcel of Land known and described as Block 133, Plot 10, Lekki Peninsula Scheme 1 to Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, who was then the Chief Security Officer (SO) to Gen. Sanni Abacha, then Head of State.

“That Mr Alex Ochomogor was introduced to the property at Block 133, Plot 10, Lekk Phase 1, Lagos through Agent, Donatus Eze, a Managing Director of Trust Dede and Property Nigeria Limited of Plot 6, Udeco Road, Off Chevron Drive, Lekki, Lagos on 3rd of March, 2015.

“That Engineer Peter Omotosho of Archbond Builders Ltd confirmed to the police that the demolition notice was properly signed by himself and Mr Bode Agoro of Lagos State, and therefore it is not a forged document.

“The Demolition Notice was also published by Lagos State Government in Punch Newspaper on 11th September 2009 and duly signed by Mr Gbenga B. Ashafa, Permanent Secretary, Lands Bureau, Lagos State Government.

The police confirmed that the (complainant) Dr Obidigwe Eze’s deed of assignment was not signed by Major Hamza Al-Mustapha and his lawyer, Abdul Fatai Alao Thomas.

The Registrar of Titles in Lagos State confirmed to the police that the memorandum of loss was registered correctly and, therefore, it was not forged.

“The police confirmed that the memorandum of loss declaration and affidavit of loss were properly signed by Al-Mustapha, and therefore, they were not forged.”