EFCC misled court to seize my houses — Saraki

Former President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of misleading a Federal High Court into granting the forfeiture of his houses in Ikoyi, Lagos state to the Federal Government.
The court, headed by Justice Mohammed Liman, had on Monday, based on the filings of the EFCC, ordered the interim forfeiture of two buildings belonging to Saraki to the Federal Government.
But reacting to the development shortly after the judgement, Saraki, via his Twitter handle, said: “It is my belief that the judge was misled into granting this Order and was not presented with the full position of the law or the facts.
“It is my belief that the Court was not informed of a pending Order of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja restraining EFCC from taking any steps regarding the seizure of the property in question pending the determination of a suit filed before that Court.
“I also believe that the Court was not made aware that the property in question formed part of the judgment of the Court given on July 6, 2018 where the Supreme Court declared that the source of funds for the purchase of the property was not illicit as claimed by the prosecution.
“The Supreme Court specifically referred to No 17a McDonald Road, Ikoyi on pages 12, 13 and 26 of its judgment upholding the no-case submission made before the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
“I am confident that once these facts and the declaration of the Supreme Court are brought before the Court, this Order will be vacated.
“My lawyers will be approaching the Court immediately to achieve this.”