Details have emerged on how operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) stormed Providus Bank head office in Victoria Island, Lagos and arrested the bank’s officials over a suspicious $7 million cash deposit.
According to sources, the raid followed a tipoff from an internal whistleblower who alerted the EFCC about unusual cash transactions at the bank’s vaults. The funds were reportedly deposited in raw cash on March 26 and 27, 2025, rather than credited into any customer account — a red flag for money laundering.
Investigations however linked the money to the embattled Abuja businesswoman, Aisha Achimugu who is the chief executive officer of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Achimugu, however, denied ownership of the funds when invited by the EFCC, claiming instead that she only took a $7 million loan from the bank which she had yet to repay.
According to an EFCC insider, “The money was deposited under suspicious circumstances in raw cash. Instead of paying it into their customer’s account, the money was deposited into the vaults of Providus Bank, which was unusual and suspicious.”
Acting on the intelligence, EFCC operatives swooped on the bank unannounced, carted away the suspicious funds, and detained some employees for interrogation. During questioning, the bank staff disclosed that the money belonged to Achimugu, the CEO of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Unable to reconcile conflicting claims, the EFCC published notices in national dailies inviting anyone with legitimate ownership of the cash to come forward. No claimant appeared, and the funds were subsequently transferred to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for safekeeping.
On Monday, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja granted the EFCC’s motion for final forfeiture, ordering that the $7 million be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government as suspected proceeds of crime.
EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, told the court that due process had been followed since the interim forfeiture order was granted on August 27, noting: “My lord, since August 27, when your lordship granted the order, to date, we have not received any opposition to our application. Hence, we filed a motion for final forfeiture.”
Although lawyers briefly appeared claiming to represent unnamed parties, none filed formal objections, clearing the way for Monday’s ruling.
Recall, Achimugu is also at the center of another ongoing EFCC case involving $12 million allegedly laundered through SunTrust Bank executives Halima Buba (Managing Director/CEO) and Innocent Mbagwu (Chief Compliance Officer).
Testifying before Justice Nwite, the first prosecution witness, a bureau de change operator, confirmed he received $12 million in raw cash between March 10 and 24, 2025, facilitated through SunTrust’s Abuja and Lagos branches on behalf of Achimugu.
He added, “None of the money went through my account,” explaining that the transactions were carried out entirely outside the formal banking process. The witness also testified that Achimugu had previously given him another $1.8 million for conversion into naira.
The EFCC is prosecuting the case on a six-count charge of money laundering, with proceedings still ongoing.
Details have emerged on how operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) stormed Providus Bank head office in Victoria Island, Lagos and arrested the bank’s officials over a suspicious $7 million cash deposit.
According to sources, the raid followed a tipoff from an internal whistleblower who alerted the EFCC about unusual cash transactions at the bank’s vaults. The funds were reportedly deposited in raw cash on March 26 and 27, 2025, rather than credited into any customer account — a red flag for money laundering.
Investigations however linked the money to the embattled Abuja businesswoman, Aisha Achimugu who is the chief executive officer of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Achimugu, however, denied ownership of the funds when invited by the EFCC, claiming instead that she only took a $7 million loan from the bank which she had yet to repay.
According to an EFCC insider, “The money was deposited under suspicious circumstances in raw cash. Instead of paying it into their customer’s account, the money was deposited into the vaults of Providus Bank, which was unusual and suspicious.”
Acting on the intelligence, EFCC operatives swooped on the bank unannounced, carted away the suspicious funds, and detained some employees for interrogation. During questioning, the bank staff disclosed that the money belonged to Achimugu, the CEO of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Unable to reconcile conflicting claims, the EFCC published notices in national dailies inviting anyone with legitimate ownership of the cash to come forward. No claimant appeared, and the funds were subsequently transferred to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for safekeeping.
On Monday, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja granted the EFCC’s motion for final forfeiture, ordering that the $7 million be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government as suspected proceeds of crime.
EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, told the court that due process had been followed since the interim forfeiture order was granted on August 27, noting: “My lord, since August 27, when your lordship granted the order, to date, we have not received any opposition to our application. Hence, we filed a motion for final forfeiture.”
Although lawyers briefly appeared claiming to represent unnamed parties, none filed formal objections, clearing the way for Monday’s ruling.
Recall, Achimugu is also at the center of another ongoing EFCC case involving $12 million allegedly laundered through SunTrust Bank executives Halima Buba (Managing Director/CEO) and Innocent Mbagwu (Chief Compliance Officer).
Testifying before Justice Nwite, the first prosecution witness, a bureau de change operator, confirmed he received $12 million in raw cash between March 10 and 24, 2025, facilitated through SunTrust’s Abuja and Lagos branches on behalf of Achimugu.
He added, “None of the money went through my account,” explaining that the transactions were carried out entirely outside the formal banking process. The witness also testified that Achimugu had previously given him another $1.8 million for conversion into naira.
The EFCC is prosecuting the case on a six-count charge of money laundering, with proceedings still ongoing.
Details have emerged on how operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) stormed Providus Bank head office in Victoria Island, Lagos and arrested the bank’s officials over a suspicious $7 million cash deposit.
According to sources, the raid followed a tipoff from an internal whistleblower who alerted the EFCC about unusual cash transactions at the bank’s vaults. The funds were reportedly deposited in raw cash on March 26 and 27, 2025, rather than credited into any customer account — a red flag for money laundering.
Investigations however linked the money to the embattled Abuja businesswoman, Aisha Achimugu who is the chief executive officer of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Achimugu, however, denied ownership of the funds when invited by the EFCC, claiming instead that she only took a $7 million loan from the bank which she had yet to repay.
According to an EFCC insider, “The money was deposited under suspicious circumstances in raw cash. Instead of paying it into their customer’s account, the money was deposited into the vaults of Providus Bank, which was unusual and suspicious.”
Acting on the intelligence, EFCC operatives swooped on the bank unannounced, carted away the suspicious funds, and detained some employees for interrogation. During questioning, the bank staff disclosed that the money belonged to Achimugu, the CEO of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Unable to reconcile conflicting claims, the EFCC published notices in national dailies inviting anyone with legitimate ownership of the cash to come forward. No claimant appeared, and the funds were subsequently transferred to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for safekeeping.
On Monday, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja granted the EFCC’s motion for final forfeiture, ordering that the $7 million be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government as suspected proceeds of crime.
EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, told the court that due process had been followed since the interim forfeiture order was granted on August 27, noting: “My lord, since August 27, when your lordship granted the order, to date, we have not received any opposition to our application. Hence, we filed a motion for final forfeiture.”
Although lawyers briefly appeared claiming to represent unnamed parties, none filed formal objections, clearing the way for Monday’s ruling.
Recall, Achimugu is also at the center of another ongoing EFCC case involving $12 million allegedly laundered through SunTrust Bank executives Halima Buba (Managing Director/CEO) and Innocent Mbagwu (Chief Compliance Officer).
Testifying before Justice Nwite, the first prosecution witness, a bureau de change operator, confirmed he received $12 million in raw cash between March 10 and 24, 2025, facilitated through SunTrust’s Abuja and Lagos branches on behalf of Achimugu.
He added, “None of the money went through my account,” explaining that the transactions were carried out entirely outside the formal banking process. The witness also testified that Achimugu had previously given him another $1.8 million for conversion into naira.
The EFCC is prosecuting the case on a six-count charge of money laundering, with proceedings still ongoing.
Details have emerged on how operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) stormed Providus Bank head office in Victoria Island, Lagos and arrested the bank’s officials over a suspicious $7 million cash deposit.
According to sources, the raid followed a tipoff from an internal whistleblower who alerted the EFCC about unusual cash transactions at the bank’s vaults. The funds were reportedly deposited in raw cash on March 26 and 27, 2025, rather than credited into any customer account — a red flag for money laundering.
Investigations however linked the money to the embattled Abuja businesswoman, Aisha Achimugu who is the chief executive officer of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Achimugu, however, denied ownership of the funds when invited by the EFCC, claiming instead that she only took a $7 million loan from the bank which she had yet to repay.
According to an EFCC insider, “The money was deposited under suspicious circumstances in raw cash. Instead of paying it into their customer’s account, the money was deposited into the vaults of Providus Bank, which was unusual and suspicious.”
Acting on the intelligence, EFCC operatives swooped on the bank unannounced, carted away the suspicious funds, and detained some employees for interrogation. During questioning, the bank staff disclosed that the money belonged to Achimugu, the CEO of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Unable to reconcile conflicting claims, the EFCC published notices in national dailies inviting anyone with legitimate ownership of the cash to come forward. No claimant appeared, and the funds were subsequently transferred to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for safekeeping.
On Monday, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja granted the EFCC’s motion for final forfeiture, ordering that the $7 million be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government as suspected proceeds of crime.
EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, told the court that due process had been followed since the interim forfeiture order was granted on August 27, noting: “My lord, since August 27, when your lordship granted the order, to date, we have not received any opposition to our application. Hence, we filed a motion for final forfeiture.”
Although lawyers briefly appeared claiming to represent unnamed parties, none filed formal objections, clearing the way for Monday’s ruling.
Recall, Achimugu is also at the center of another ongoing EFCC case involving $12 million allegedly laundered through SunTrust Bank executives Halima Buba (Managing Director/CEO) and Innocent Mbagwu (Chief Compliance Officer).
Testifying before Justice Nwite, the first prosecution witness, a bureau de change operator, confirmed he received $12 million in raw cash between March 10 and 24, 2025, facilitated through SunTrust’s Abuja and Lagos branches on behalf of Achimugu.
He added, “None of the money went through my account,” explaining that the transactions were carried out entirely outside the formal banking process. The witness also testified that Achimugu had previously given him another $1.8 million for conversion into naira.
The EFCC is prosecuting the case on a six-count charge of money laundering, with proceedings still ongoing.
