The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on Thursday, December 18, arraigned Adamu Jubrin Hussaini, a director of lands with the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), for forging land documents in Abuja.
The defendant was brought before a federal capital territory high court on a three-count charge of forgery, contrary to section 362 and punishable under section 363 of the penal code.
According to the charge, the defendant, while serving as director of lands, forged the signature of a former director of land administration, Mainasara Garba Babayo, on statutory rights of occupancy purportedly issued on June 5, 2023.
The land titles were said to relate to three plots, plots 3128, 3129, and 1204, situated in Cadastral zone E07, Lugbe central district, Abuja, and allocated to Etha Ventures Limited.
According to the ICPC, the case followed intelligence reports and a petition from members of the public alleging fraudulent allocation and reallocation of land by officials of the FCTA and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA).
Investigations revealed that Babayo served as director of land administration between 2011 and August 2016 before his redeployment, while Hussaini assumed the position in 2016.
The commission stated that despite this, land documents dated 2023 were issued bearing Babayo’s signature several years after he had left the office.
Hussaini pleaded not guilty to all charges.
During the proceedings, ICPC counsel, Golden Iwuagu, asked the court to fix a date for the commencement of trial.
The presiding judge, Justice Husseini Baba Yusuf, adjourned the case to March 12, 2026, for further proceedings.
The court granted the defendant bail for ₦20 million with one surety in the same amount.
Justice Yusuf ruled that the surety must be a serving or retired deputy director who owns landed property within the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), with a valid certificate of occupancy to be deposited with the court registrar.
Pending the fulfilment of the bail conditions, the judge ordered that Hussaini be remanded at the Kuje correctional centre.
The ICPC reiterated its commitment to combating corruption and safeguarding public assets, including land resources, and urged public officials to uphold transparency and integrity in the discharge of their duties.
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