Court orders interim forfeiture of hotel over drug trafficking

FILE: Court

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The Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the interim forfeiture of Rockford Hotel, located at 1 Feyisetan Street, Abule Iroko, Sango, Ogun State, on the grounds that it is suspected to be proceeds of drug trafficking.

The order covers the hotel and all its appurtenances.

Justice Daniel Osiagor issued the interim order on Tuesday, after granting an ex parte application filed and argued by the commander of Narcotics and Head of the Prosecution/Legal Services Unit of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Strategic Command of the National Drug and Law Enforcement Agency, Ibrahim Abu.

In the suit marked FHC/L/MISC/1343/2025, NDLEA listed the hotel’s owner, Adekanbi Ayinde, as the sole respondent.

Ayinde is believed to be currently at large.

Moving the application, Abu cited the provisions of Section 44 (2)(B) & (K) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Section 3 (1)(a) & (c) of the NDLEA Act, and Sections 7, 9, 10, and 12 of the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act, 2022, among others.

He asked the court for four orders: the interim attachment and preservation of Rockford Hotel, registered with the CAC under No. 3064821, because it is reasonably believed to be proceeds of drug trafficking; publication of the order in a widely circulated national newspaper within 14 days; the appointment of an asset manager to continue running the hotel as a going concern pending the resolution of the case; and a restriction preventing any individual from interfering with the property.

The NDLEA counsel listed eight grounds in support of the motion, stating that the hotel was acquired with proceeds of unlawful drug activities.

The agency said Ayinde allegedly conspired with one “Yemi,” who is also at large, to recruit Adekoya Mary, who has been convicted and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment, for the illegal export of 2.20kg of cocaine to India.

CAC registration records, the agency said, confirm Ayinde as the hotel’s owner.

The NDLEA stated that financial investigations revealed significant monetary transactions between Ayinde and the convicted trafficker, noting that Ayinde is involved in narcotics trafficking and has evaded arrest, making the attachment of the property necessary to preserve it during ongoing investigations.

The motion, according to the agency, was supported by documentary exhibits and a 10-paragraph affidavit sworn to by Okonkwo Ebuka Anthony, a litigation officer with the NDLEA’s airport command.

After hearing the application, Justice Osiagor held that it had merit and granted all the reliefs sought.

The court adjourned the case to May 7, 2026, for a report of compliance.

Onozure is a correspondent of The PUNCH on the judiciary beat. She has over a decade experience covering criminal and civil matters from the magistrate to the appellate courts. She’s a graduate of Political Science

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