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ABUJA, Nigeria - The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the final forfeiture of two properties linked to Aminu Garunbaba, a worker at the Federal Inland Revenue Service, to the federal government.
The real estate includes a four-bedroom terrace maisonette with BQ situated in Barumark Groove Estate, Plot 667, Cadastral Zone BO3, Wuye District, Abuja, which Garunbaba acquired under the name of MYZ Venture. The second property is located at No. 5 Lodge Road, Kano, also reported to have been bought by Garunbaba.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu ruled that Garunbaba did not provide evidence of the means by which he purchased the properties. The judge stated that he failed to demonstrate that the funds used for the purchases came from legitimate earnings. “A person cannot benefit from illegitimate acts,” he remarked.
The judge dismissed Garunbaba's preliminary objection, noting that he did not meet the burden of proof regarding the paragraphs in the EFCC’s application that he claimed violated the Evidence Act.
He concurred with EFCC counsel, Martha Babatunde, that a public officer could be investigated and prosecuted prior to any administrative disciplinary action.
The EFCC filed the case marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/876/2021 against Aminu Sidi Garunbaba as the sole respondent, with a motion on notice dated March 16, 2022, but submitted on March 21, 2022. The agency sought a final court order to forfeit the properties listed in Schedule 1 as they were believed to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
The EFCC presented four arguments, asserting that the court possessed the necessary statutory authority under Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act of 2006 to grant the requested relief. It stated, “The properties implicated are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
In support of the motion, EFCC operative Apagu Wudah stated in an affidavit that extensive investigations into the assets were conducted.
He mentioned being assigned to probe an intelligence report concerning criminal conspiracy, theft, abuse of office, and money laundering involving some FIRS staff.
Wudah disclosed that between 2017 and 2018, Garunbaba and other FIRS staff had conspired to fraudulently obtain millions of naira under the pretense of duty tour allowances for trips they did not undertake.
As part of the illicit operation, they applied for DTA for non-existent trips. Upon receiving the DTA payment, staff would take 10 to 15 percent as their share while passing the remainder to senior officials, some of whom also retained a percentage before forwarding the rest to the former director of finance and the coordinating director.
According to Wudah, Garunbaba disclosed in his extra-judicial statement made on May 23, 2019, that he distributed a total amount of N269,335,750 among several individuals—Peter Hena (N145,000,000), Bello Auta (N95,000,000), and Aminu Sidi (N29,336,750).
He stated that this money was handed over in cash at the FIRS office.
The investigator further explained that Garunbaba received portions of the misappropriated funds via his Stanbic IBTC Bank account number 9301540597, while others were received in cash from colleagues.
He also converted most of these funds into US dollars through a bureau de change operator, Wan Jafar Shehu.
In the year 2018, Garunbaba bought the four-bedroom terrace maisonette from Barumark Investment and Development Company Ltd for N65 million, paid through his First Bank account number 3040986059 to Barumark’s First Bank account.
He purchased the property at No. 5 Lodge Road in Kano for N39 million from Alakhillau Enterprises, operated by Adamu Muhammed.
Wudah concluded that Garunbaba, as a public servant with a fixed salary, did not use his lawful income to acquire the aforementioned properties, which were purchased at a time he was both receiving and diverting funds paid as DTA by the FIRS.
