By Peter Omopo
The Federal Government is set to arraign a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Mike Ozekhome, before the Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja, over alleged fraud linked to a property in London, United Kingdom.
The arraignment, barring any last-minute changes, is scheduled for Monday, January 26, 2026, at Courtroom 4 of the FCT High Court, according to a hearing notice sighted on Wednesday.
Ozekhome is listed as the sole defendant in the case, with the Federal Republic of Nigeria named as the plaintiff. The prosecution will be conducted by the Head of the High Profile Prosecution Department of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Osuobeni Akponimisingha.
The hearing notice stated that the matter would be transferred from the general cause list to the hearing paper for the scheduled date at 9:00 a.m. It also noted that any party seeking an adjournment must apply promptly to the court and provide supporting evidence where necessary. Parties intending to compel the attendance of witnesses were advised to give reasonable notice.
The ICPC filed a three-count charge against Ozekhome on January 16.
In the first count, the commission alleged that in August 2021, Ozekhome directly received a property located at 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX, purportedly from one Mr. Shani Tali, with knowledge that the act constituted a felony. The offence is said to be contrary to Section 13 and punishable under Section 24 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
The second count alleged that Ozekhome, while acting as a legal practitioner and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, created a false Nigerian passport bearing the name of Mr. Shani Tali in August 2021. The prosecution claimed the document was used to support a fraudulent ownership claim to the London property, an offence contrary to Sections 363 and 364 of the Penal Code, Laws of the FCT, Abuja.
The third count accused Ozekhome of dishonestly using the same alleged false passport to substantiate the ownership claim, knowing the document to be false, contrary to Section 366 and punishable under Section 364 of the Penal Code.
The case followed a petition submitted to the ICPC by the head of the Human and Environmental Development Agenda, Mr. Olanrewaju Suraj. The petition reportedly relied on a judgment of a British court, which accused Ozekhome and others of conspiring with corrupt Nigerian officials to procure forged national identity documents in order to fraudulently claim ownership of a property in North London.
The ICPC said it commenced investigations after a London property tribunal issued a judgment implicating Ozekhome and others in alleged acts involving fraud and forged documents.
