The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday set aside the seizure of assets belonging to a businessman, Jimoh Ibrahim, whom the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) accused of being indebted to the tune of N69.4 billion debt.
The ruling of the judge, Okon Abang, came only some days after his colleague in the Lagos Division of the court, Rilwan Aikawa, rejected Mr Ibrahim’s request to set aside the seizure order.
AMCON had, on November 4, obtained the interim seizure order from Aikawa of the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court.
The judge, on February 16, declined to vacate the interim order when approached by Mr Ibrahim.
But Mr Abang, in the Abuja division of the court, granted the businessman’s request on Monday, agreeing with him that AMCON had obtained the interim order for the seizure of his assets through concealment of material facts.
The judge vacated all consequential orders earlier made by Mr Aikawa on November 4, 2020.
Mr Ibrahim, along with his NICON Investment Ltd and Global Fleet Oil & Gas Ltd, had urged Mr Abang to set aside the order for “non-disclosure and misrepresentation of material facts.”
They further prayed the court to order AMCON to pay N50 billion indemnity for alleged failure to conduct due diligence before obtaining the said order and for misrepresentation and concealment of fact.
AMCON on November 18, announced that it had taken over 12 assets belonging to the businessman and his firms.
The assets include the NICON Investment Ltd building Plot 242, Muhammadu Buhari Way, Central Business District, Abuja; NICON Hotels Ltd building at Plot 557, Port-Harcourt Crescent, off Gimbiya Street, Abuja and the building hosting NICON Lekki Ltd at No. 5, Customs Street, Lagos.
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