A Lagos Special Offences Court on Wednesday sentenced Emmanuel Nwude, former Union Bank director, and two lawyers, Emmanuel Ilechukwu and Rowland Kalu, to one year in prison each for forgery and dealing in forfeited property.
The judgement, delivered by Justice Mojisola Dada, concluded a long-running case that has spanned more than a decade, following the trio’s alleged attempt to illegally transact a property already forfeited to victims of Nwude’s infamous $242 million “non-existent airport” fraud.
Nwude was previously sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2005 after defrauding Nelson Sakaguchi, a former director of Brazil’s Banco Noroeste, by selling a fictitious airport.
Between 2011 and 2012, prosecutors alleged, Nwude, Ilechukwu, and Kalu conspired to engage in transactions on a property located at Plot Y, Mobolaji Johnson Street, Oregun, Ikeja — despite being aware that the property had been forfeited to crime victims.
The defendants pleaded not guilty to the amended 15-count charge which included conspiracy, forgery, uttering false documents, dealing in forfeited property, attempting to pervert justice, and fabricating evidence.
During the trial, which began with the arraignment in March 2018, the prosecution led by Nnaemeka Omewa presented five witnesses and multiple documents as evidence.
Nwude filed a no-case submission in 2019, but the court dismissed it and directed him and his co-defendants to present their defence.
Over the next six years, the defendants testified and presented witnesses in their defence, with multiple adjournments before final submissions were filed in 2025.
Despite attempts to involve the Directorate of Public Prosecutions midway through the final stages, the court maintained the case’s progression to judgement.
Justice Dada found the trio guilty on 13 of the 15 counts, acquitting them on two charges related to making false statements to a public officer. Each was sentenced to one year in prison.
An EFCC statement hailed the judgement as a significant milestone in the fight against financial crimes, emphasizing that no one, regardless of past influence or stature, is above the law.
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