Edo Court Orders Attachment Of Suspect’s Property To Alleged Financial Crimes

by Idahosa Musa

A Federal High Court sitting in Benin, Edo State, has ordered the interim attachment of a property belonging to Jessica Oghomwen Iguodala to her alleged failure to appear before the court to answer charges bordering on financial crimes and other offences.

The order, made by Justice B. O. Quadri, followed an ex-parte application filed by the police prosecutor, P. I. Odion, seeking the attachment of the property located at No. 127, Independent Street, off Ighomwenghian Street, Upper Sakponba Road, Benin City.

The prosecutor told the court that the application was intended to compel the defendant’s appearance, following allegations that she had failed to honour previous court processes.

The motion was supported by a 12-paragraph affidavit, two exhibits and a written address.

However, counsel to the defendant, Imagbeghian, opposed the application, arguing that the processes were defective under the Administration of Criminal Justice Law and that there was no sufficient basis to establish that his client had absconded.

Responding, Odion submitted that the property belonged to Jessica by inheritance, describing her as the only surviving child of her late mother. He maintained that the attachment was necessary to secure her attendance before the court.

Counsel to the nominal complainant, Omoruyi Oloton, Chief Executive Officer of Uyi Technical Limited, Douglas Ogbankua, alongside S. U. Obazee, Osamede Enababor, A. J. Onwunaje and O. T. Okeke, challenged Imagbeghian’s appearance, describing him as a meddlesome interloper and arguing that no formal correspondence establishing his engagement as the defendant’s counsel was before the court.

Ogbankua also accused the lawyer of encouraging the defendant to evade justice, describing his appearance in the matter as contemptuous. The defence, however, maintained its objection to the application.

The latest development followed an earlier order directing the publication of a public summons compelling Jessica to appear before the court on or before March 12, 2026, to answer charges bordering on alleged money laundering, operating a financial institution without a licence and aiding the suicide of Lilian Omokhuale, daughter of Oloton.

The court had directed that the summons be published in two national newspapers, including The Nigerian Observer and Vanguard, while copies were also to be pasted on the notice board of the Federal High Court on Sapele Road, Benin City. The directives have since been complied with.

The earlier application was supported by a nine-paragraph affidavit and a warrant of arrest issued on November 19, 2024.

The prosecutor alleged that the defendant had failed to appear for her plea and was concealing herself to frustrate the execution of the warrant.

Citing Section 41 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2025, the prosecutor argued that the law empowers courts to order public summons where a suspect against whom a warrant has been issued is believed to have absconded or gone into hiding.

The provision requires the person concerned to appear at a specified place and time not less than 30 days after publication.