Court fixes March 25 to rule on EFCC’s motion for final forfeiture of $13m being claimed by Aisha Achimugu’s Oceangate

A Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled ruling for March 25 on a motion filed by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for the final forfeiture of $13million being claimed by Oceangate Engineering Oil & Gas Ltd, a firm being associated with businesswoman, Aisha Achimugu

Justice Emeka Nwite chose the date on Monday after EFCC’S lawyer, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) and Oceangate’s lawyer, Darlington Ozurumba made their final submissions.

The court had last year, issued an order for the interim forfeiture of the funds, which the EFCC claimed were proceeds of unlawful activities.

It ordered the commission to publish the interim order in a national daily for any interested party to show cause why the money should not be permanently forfeited to the Fed Govt.

In response to the publication, Oceangate filed an affidavit to show cause, claiming ownership of the money and among others, rejected EFCC’s allegation that the funds formed proceeds of unlawful activities.

Oceangate claimed that the funds were legitimately sourced for the payment for its interest in two oil licences – PPL 302 and PPL 3007 – which it won sometime in 2024.

The EFCC, in its response to Oceangate’s affidavit to show cause, gave details of its investigation, which it claimed, revealed that the $13m was from unlawful sources.

The commission also claimed that part of the money was contributed by contractors engaged by the Lagos State Government.

On September 15, 2025 the same court granted similar motion by the EFCC for the final forfeiture of $7m which claimed to have recovered in Providus Bank branch in Ikoyi Lagos, but which nobody came forward to claim.

A company, Felak Group later issued a statement to dismiss reports linking its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Aisha Achimugu and its subsidiary, Oceangate Engineering Oil & Gas, to a controversial $7 million cash transaction allegedly tied to Providus Bank.

In its response to Oceangate’s affidavit to show cause, the EFCC said: “In the course of our investigation, we found that Iliya Wakil, the deponent of the respondent’s affidavit to show cause, was a mere nominal director with no shareholding of Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited and an employee of Felak Concept Limited, a company incorporated on May 5, 2000.

“On the 31st day of March 2014, a company known as Felak Concept Group Limited, with registration No 1181455 was incorporated at the Corporate Affairs Commission by Felak Concept Limited, Altex Engineering Oil and Gass Limited, Wishwhich Koncept Limited, Ay-Dol International Limited, and Oceangate Engineering Oli & Gas as shareholders.

“The $13,000,000 (Thirteen million United States dollars) forfeited in the interim by this court to the Federal Government of Nigeria was not proceeds of any lawful, legitimate, provable, known and justifiable income of the respondent (Oceangate), rather the fund is reasonably suspected to proceeds of unlawful activity,” it said.

The EFCC, while revealing how Oceangate came about the two oil licences, said: “Sometimes in 2024, OceanGate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited participated in an oil block licensing bid for deep offshore -PPL302 and shallow water -PPL 3007.

“Upon the completion of the technical and commercial bid exercise, Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited vide a letter dated 29th January, 2025 was notified by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) of its winning bidder status as well as the condition precedent to be fulfilled before issuance of a licence to the company.

“The total financial obligations of Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited to the Federal Government before the issuance of the Petroleum Prospecting License (PPL) to Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited was $37,223,144.00.”

The EFCC stated that $13,000,000, in respect of which it currently seeks a permanent forfeiture order to “were transferred to the Oceangate’s account domiciled in Zenith Bank Pic in tranches by Ashrab Energy and Oil services Ltd, Tripple A and Tee Oil Nig Ltd, Code Crafter Tech Ltd, Overcliffe Energy Solutions and Prism 24 Oil and Gas.

“Ashrab Energy and Oil services Ltd, Tripple A and Tee Oil Nig Ltd, Code Crafter Tech Ltd, Over cliffe Energy Solutions and Prism 24 Oil and Gas, who transferred these funds to the Oceangate’s Zenith Bank account are neither investors in the business of oil and gas nor into any legal and legitimate contractual business relationship with Oceangate Oil and Gas.

“Neither Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited nor the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) Dr. Aisha Achimugu Sulaiman also rendered any lawful or legitimate services to Ashrab Energy and Oil services Ltd, Tripple A and Tee Oil Nig Ltd, Code Crafter Tech Ltd, Overcliffe Energy Solutions and Prism 24 oil and gas to have legitimized the payment of the whopping sum of thirteen million United States dollars, which was retained and subsequently transferred by the respondent for the acquisition of its interest in PPL 302 and PPL 3007.

“Ashrab Energy and Oil services Ltd, 4 oe A and Tee Oil Nig Ltd, Code Crafter Tech Ltd, Overcliffe Energy Solutions and Prism 24 Oil and Gas who paid this whooping fund sought to be forfeited into the respondent accounts are not all licensed Bureau de Change (BDC) entities in foreign exchange.

“There is no single transfer of legitimate funds whether in naira or foreign exchange from Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited’s bank account to the aforementioned companies who transferred the funds sought to be forfeited to the respondent’s account.

“Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited neither sold any petroleum-related product nor rendered any related oil and gas sundry services to the aforementioned companies, other than being used as a vehicle for concealing and disguising the reasonably suspected unlawful origin of the funds now sought to be forfeited.

“In a desperate bid to make the instant/unlawful transaction look legitimate, Oceangate Oil and Gas, whilst working in concert with its Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), procured different proforma invoices wherein it was claimed that Ashrab Energy Oil Service Ltd, Tripple A and Tee Oil Nig Ltd, and Prism 24 Oil and Gas ,who paid this whooping fund invested in the acquisition of oil and gas assets.

“Furthermore, Oceangate Oil and Gas, in its desperate bid to conceal the reasonably suspected unlawful origin of the fund now sought to be forfeited, by letters dated 4th and 6th March, 2025 respectively, signed by one Mbaike Uzomato, the managing director, Tripple A and Tee Oil Nig Ltd and Ashrab Energy Oil Service Ltd respectively, purported that Oceangate Oil and Gas Limited requested a debt financing facility of $10,000,000 USD each from these companies to enable Oceangate meet the commercial terms and conditions for the acquisition of PPL302 and PPL3007,” which representation, the EFCC said its investigating team found to be false.