Court Orders Forfeiture of ₦1.1bn in Explosive Kano Funds Scandal

By Taiye Agbaje (NAN)

The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the interim forfeiture of over ₦1.1 billion allegedly linked to the Kano State Government, following an application by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

Justice Emeka Nwite made the order on Tuesday after granting an ex parte motion filed by the ICPC, represented by its counsel, Oluwafunke Bada.

The court held that the application was meritorious and accordingly ordered that the funds be temporarily forfeited pending further proceedings

The court further directed that the forfeiture order be published in a national newspaper, inviting any interested party to appear and show cause why the money should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.

The matter was adjourned until January 21, 2026, for a report on compliance with the publication order.

The funds, amounting to ₦1,109,230,000, were said to have been recovered during investigations into an ICPC petition alleging illegal withdrawals from the Kano State Federation Account domiciled with United Bank for Africa.

The suit, filed by an ICPC Assistant Director, Z.S. Nass, claimed the money was reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities

According to an affidavit deposed to by David Nelson, the commission received a petition from concerned Kano residents alleging that ₦2.3 billion had been withdrawn in cash and diverted for non-governmental purposes.

Investigations allegedly traced authorisation of payments to the Kano State Accountant-General, Abdulkadir Abdulsalam, involving transfers to two bureau de change companies

The ICPC further alleged that the transactions were disguised as payments for diesel supplies based on letters of authority from two oil firms—A. Y. Maikifi Oil & Gas Ltd and Ammas Petroleum Company Ltd—whose managing directors later told investigators that no such contracts or supplies existed

The commission said it recovered the ₦1.1 billion in instalments and urged the court to preserve the funds in the interest of justice, pending determination of the substantive forfeiture proceedings.