By Adebola Isimijola, Lagos
A Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the final forfeiture of N17.1 million allegedly linked to romance fraud and other criminal activities to the Federal Government.
Justice A.O. Owoeye of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, made the order on Monday following an application filed by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The anti-graft agency disclosed this in a statement on Monday, noting that the forfeited sum of N17,100,595.40, domiciled in an Access Bank account, was traced to one Ifeanyi Alele David, who is currently under investigation for alleged romance scam activities.
According to the EFCC, the court had earlier granted an interim forfeiture order on February 26, 2026, and directed the Commission to publish the order in a national newspaper to allow any interested party to challenge the forfeiture.
Counsel to the EFCC, C.C. Okezie, told the court that the interim order was subsequently published in The Punch newspaper on April 10, 2026, in compliance with the court’s directive.
She further informed the court that no individual or organisation came forward within the stipulated period to contest the forfeiture.
In an affidavit supporting the application, an EFCC operative, Samson Aguma, detailed the findings of investigations conducted by the Commission in collaboration with the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Aguma stated that the EFCC received intelligence from the FBI alleging that David was involved in a romance fraud scheme linked to the death of a United States citizen.
According to the affidavit, the victim died by suicide in a hotel room in Denver, Colorado, on September 15, 2021. Investigators reportedly recovered the victim’s mobile device and discovered multiple communications with an individual identified as “Garry Micheal” through the Google Hangouts platform.
The suspect was alleged to have repeatedly solicited money from the victim under various false claims, including requests for funds to secure his release from prison and facilitate his return to the United States.
The affidavit further revealed that on the day of the victim’s death, the suspect allegedly demanded an additional $60,000 despite being informed of the victim’s severe financial hardship.
Investigations by the FBI reportedly showed that the victim transferred approximately $154,500 between August 30 and September 13, 2021, through channels linked to the fraudulent scheme.
Aguma stated that forensic investigations traced email accounts, internet protocol addresses, telephone records and an Apple iCloud account associated with the alleged fraud to David in Nigeria.
He added that the N17.1 million discovered in the suspect’s bank account was reasonably believed to be proceeds of unlawful activities connected to the scheme.
After reviewing the evidence presented by the EFCC, Justice Owoeye held that the application was meritorious and ordered the final forfeiture of the funds to the Federal Government.
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