Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja has given an order to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest and hold Amarachi Iwuanyawu, Chairman of Abuja-based Sun Gold Estate Limited, over an alleged N785M fraud.
On Friday, the Judge gave the order in response to an ex-parte request from the Executive Chairman of EFCC.
Justice Ekwo said that when the Estate Developer was caught, he should be held until February 23, 2019, when the anti-graft agency should bring him to court.
In the ex-parte application, which was argued on behalf of the EFCC Chairman by Olarewaju Adeola, the Developer was said to have made a deal with another Abuja company, Hokiz Investment Limited, in 2012.
In the contract, Sun Gold Estate Limited agreed to build 14 four-bedroom terraces and one six-flat block on land owned by Hokiz Investment Limited in Abuja’s Mabushi neighborhood.
Both parties agreed that Hokiz Investment Limited, which owned the land, would get 40% of the buildings, while Sun Gold Estate, which built the buildings, would keep 60%.
But when the project was done, it was said that Sun Gold Estate Limited sold all the buildings without telling the owner of the land.
The Chairman of the Estate Developer was said to have gotten away with N785M, which is the value of 40% of the buildings.
The EFCC told the court that they were looking into a petition that was signed by Abdullahi Malik, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria SAN, on behalf of the person who was upset.
The anti-corruption agency, on the other hand, was disappointed that Amarachi Iwuanyawu didn’t show up when they asked him to talk about the allegations. This is why they asked the court to make him be arrested.
EFCC said that based on the information it had, the suspect had made his way to the United States of America.
Justice Ekwo, after looking at the evidence and listening to EFCC’s lawyer, Mr. Olarewaju Adeola’s convincing arguments, told the anti-corruption agency to go after the suspect, arrest, hold, and bring him to court on February 23, 2019.
The EFCC’s ex-parte application, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2124/2022, was based on section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud Act, section 35 of the 1999 Constitution, and sections 3, 37, and 39 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015.