Refund N57m to FG or forfeit Abuja mansion, Court order Ex-Air Chief, Dikko

By Vivian Okejeme, Abuja

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, has ordered the former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Mohammed Umar Dikko, to within seven days, refund a total sum of N57million to the Federal Government.

Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, held that the sum, which was used for the renovation of a personal property that belonged to the former Air Chief, should be returned back to the coffers of the Nigerian Airforce.

In the judgement, Justice Dimgba held that the N57m was transferred into a Stanbic IBTC Account No. 9202077424 belonging to Capital Law Office and used for the renovation/improvement of Dikko’s property situated at No. 1853 Deng Xiao Ping Street, Off Mahathir Mohammed Street, Asokoro Extension Abuja.

“The Defendant shall file a Report of Compliance with the above order with the Registry of this Court and serve a copy of same on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission within 10 working days from today.

“In the event of failure by the Defendant to comply with the above orders of the Court, the Defendant’s property known as House No. 1853 Deng Xiao Ping Street, Off Mahathir Mohammed Street, Asokoro Extension Abuja shall stand permanently forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria as a tainted asset”, Justice Dimgba held.

Dikko, who piloted the affairs of the Nigerian Air, NAF, between September 2010 and October 2012, was arraigned before the court on January 25, 2017.

EFCC had in the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/92/2016, accused him of complicity in money laundering and procurement fraud, to the tune of about N9.7 billion.

The anti-graft agency, among other things, alleged that the Defendant, while in office as the Air Force Chief, withdrew N700m from the NAF account, and used same to purchase a choice property at a highbrow area within the Maitama District of Abuja.

He was further alleged to have fraudulently withdrawn N500m from the said NAF account to buy a four-bedroom duplex at Road 3B, Street 2, in Mabushi Ministers Hill, Abuja. 

Besides, EFCC, told the court that the defendant also took N250m from the NAF’s coffers to buy a property at No. 14, Audu Bako Way, GRA, Kano State in 2011.