The Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) on Monday, January 26, took over the case involving Mike Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), who has been accused of forgery and the use of false documents in a disputed property case in the United Kingdom (UK).
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) had filed a three-count charge (FCT/HC/CR/010/2026) against Ozekhome on January 16.
He was scheduled to be arraigned before a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) high court in Maitama on Monday.
However, when the case was called, Rotimi Oyedepo, informed the court that the AGF had decided to take over the prosecution.
According to Oyedepo, the case will be handled with the highest standard of efficiency, effectiveness, diligence, and compliance with due process of law, adding that the AGF would need time to review the case file.
Osuobeni Akponimisingha, counsel for the ICPC, did not oppose the application.
As a result, Peter Kekemeke, the presiding judge, adjourned the case to February 24 for the arraignment of the defendant.
Ozekhome is accused of knowingly presenting forged documents, including a Nigerian international passport, to support his claim of ownership of a property located at 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX, during proceedings before the London First-Tier Tribunal.
The alleged offences occurred around August 2021 in Maitama, within the jurisdiction of the court.
The property dispute involved Ozekhome and the late retired Lieutenant-General Jeremiah Useni.
The case was filed at the UK first-tier tribunal (Property Chamber) land registration under case number REF/2023/0155, with Tali Shani as the applicant and Ozekhome as the respondent.
The dispute arose after one ‘Ms Tali Shani’ claimed ownership of the property, while Ozekhome argued he had received the house as a gift from ‘Mr Tali Shani’ in 2021.
A witness using the name ‘Mr Tali Shani’ testified in favor of Ozekhome, stating he had powers of attorney over the property and had transferred it to Ozekhome.
He also claimed to have appointed Useni as his property manager.
On the other hand, Ms Tali Shani’s witnesses submitted several documents, including an obituary, National Identification Number ( NIN) card, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) passport, and phone number, to support her claim.
The tribunal found all documents submitted for Ms Tali Shani to be fake and ruled that neither Mr nor Ms Tali Shani existed.
The court concluded that the actual owner, under a false name, was Useni.
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