The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice (AGF) has formally filed a 12-count criminal charge against a constitutional lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Professor Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, over his alleged complicity in fraud to claim a London property.
Ozekhome, a professor of law, was charged along with one Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani) for allegedly conspiring to forge documents to lay claim to ownership of a house in the United Kingdom.
Among others, Prof. Ozekhome and Ponfa Useni were accused by the AGF of forging Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 in the name of Tali Shani and purporting the same to have been issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service, with the intent of using it to support their claim to a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom.
The offence is said to be contrary to Section 96 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 364 of the same Law.
Ozekhome and Ponfa Useni were also accused of jointly executing an irrevocable Power of Attorney dated the 30th day of May, 2020, with one Tali Shani, a fictitious person, to facilitate their claim to a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom.
The offence is said to be contrary to Sections 83, 84, and 321 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 322 of the same Law.
In a separate count, Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani) was accused of impersonation in a bid to fraudulently claim the London property said to have been acquired by the late General Jeremiah Useni through a fictitious name.
The fresh charges, filed by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation (DPPF), Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, on behalf of the AGF at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, have not yet been assigned to any judge for arraignment.
The AGF instituted the fresh charges less than 24 hours after he withdrew the earlier one filed against the senior lawyer by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
The new charges against Ozekhome are as follows:
COUNT 1
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja; Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani), male, adult of 12 Dagash M. Street, Kado Estate, Phase 1, Abuja; and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased), sometime in the year 2020 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, agreed among yourselves to cause to be done an illegal act, to wit: making a false Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 in the name of Tali Shani and purporting the same to have been issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service, with the intent of using it to support your claim to a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 96 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 364 of the same Law.
COUNT 2
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja; Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani), male, adult of 12 Dagash M. Street, Kado Estate, Phase 1, Abuja; and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased), sometime between the 30th day of May, 2020 and 2021 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, made a false Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 in the name of Tali Shani and purported the same to have been issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service, with the intent of using it to support your claim to a property located at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 363 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 364 of the same Law.
COUNT 3
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja; Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani), male, adult of 12 Dagash M. Street, Kado Estate, Phase 1, Abuja; and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased), sometime in 2022 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, conspired among yourselves to use as genuine a false Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 in the name of Tali Shani to facilitate your claim to a property located at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 96 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 364 of the same Law.
COUNT 4
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja; Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani), male, adult of 12 Dagash M. Street, Kado Estate, Phase 1, Abuja; and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased), sometime between 2023 and 2025 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, dishonestly used as genuine a false Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 in the name of Tali Shani, and you thereby committed an offence of forgery contrary to Section 366 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 364 of the same Law.
COUNT 5
That you, Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani), male, adult of 12 Dagash M. Street, Kado Estate, Phase 1, Abuja, on or about the 30th day of May, 2020 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, falsely personated Tali Shani, a fictitious person, and with such assumed character made a Power of Attorney wherein you held yourself out as Tali Shani, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 179 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under the same section of the same Law.
COUNT 6
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja, sometime in 2020 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, abetted the commission of an offence, to wit: personation of one Tali Shani by Ponfa Useni, who with such assumed false character made and executed with you as a party an Irrevocable Power of Attorney dated the 30th day of May, 2020, to facilitate your claim to a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Sections 83 and 84 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 179 of the same Law.
COUNT 7
That you, Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani), male, adult of 12 Dagash M. Street, Kado Estate, Phase 1, Abuja, on or about the 30th day of May, 2020 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, cheated by personation when you pretended to be Tali Shani, a fictitious person, and with such assumed character executed an Irrevocable Power of Attorney dated the 30th day of May, 2020 with Chief Mike A.A. Ozekhome, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 321 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 322 of the same Law.
COUNT 8
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja, sometime in 2022 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, abetted the commission of an offence, to wit: cheating by personation when you jointly executed an Irrevocable Power of Attorney dated the 30th day of May, 2020 with one Tali Shani, a fictitious person, to facilitate your claim to a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Sections 83, 84, and 321 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 322 of the same Law.
COUNT 9
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja, sometime in 2022 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, had under your control a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, which property is reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained by General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased) using the fictitious name Tali Shani, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 319A of the Penal Code Law, 2009.
COUNT 10
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, male, adult of 55 Nile Street, Maitama, Abuja, sometime in 2022 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, had under your control the sum of Eighteen Thousand Pounds Sterling, being part of the rent accrued from a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, which property is reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained by General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased) using the fictitious name Tali Shani, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 319A of the Penal Code Law, 2009.
COUNT 11
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN; Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani); and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased), sometime in 2023 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, agreed among yourselves to cause to be done an illegal act, to wit: making a false document titled “RE: REQUEST FOR AUTHENTICATION OF NIGERIAN PASSPORT NO. A07535463 BELONGING TO MR. TALI SHANI” dated 4th May, 2023 and purporting the same to have been issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service, with the intent of using it to support your claim to a property lying and situated at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 96 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 364 of the same Law.
COUNT 12
That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN; Ponfa Useni (aka Tali Shani); and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased), sometime in 2023 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, made a false document titled “RE: REQUEST FOR AUTHENTICATION OF NIGERIAN PASSPORT NO. A07535463 BELONGING TO MR. TALI SHANI” dated 4th May, 2023 and purported the same to have been issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service, with the intent of using it to support your claim to a property located at No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 363 of the Penal Code Law, 2009 and punishable under Section 364 of the same Law.
In this article