Controversial Billionaire, Jimoh Ibrahim Loses Bid To Recover Seized Assets

A Lagos Division of the Federal High Court has declined an application by billionaire businessman, Jimoh Ibrahim, to vacate an interim order used by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to seize properties belonging to him for an alleged N69.4 billion debt.

Presiding Judge, Justice Rilwan Aikawa held that the order, which he granted in November last year, subsists.

Ibrahim, a lawyer, and his companies, NICON Investment Ltd and Global Fleet Oil and Gas Ltd, had urged the court to set aside the order for “non-disclosure and misrepresentation of material facts”.

They further urged the court “to order AMCON to pay N50 billion indemnity for its alleged failure to conduct due diligence before obtaining the said order and for misrepresentation and concealment of fact”.

But Justice Aikawa upheld the argument of AMCON’s lawyer, Mr. Kemi Pinheiro, SAN that the asset recovery agency made “full and substantial disclosure of all material facts” at the time of obtaining the orders on November 4, 2020.

The judge granted the interim order on November 4.

On November 18, AMCON announced that it had taken over 12 properties belonging to the businessman and his firms.

The properties include: the NICON Investment Ltd building Plot 242, Muhammadu Buhari Way, Central Business District, Abuja; NICON Hotels Ltd building at Plot 557, Port-Harcourt Crescent, off Gimbiya Street, Abuja and the building hosting NICON Lekki Ltd at No. 5, Customs Street, Lagos.