Federal High Court Freezes Funds Linked to Aviation Firm Executive

Federal High Court Freezes Funds Linked to Aviation Firm Executive

A Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has ordered the interim forfeiture of $150,000 connected to Emmanuel Okoh, a director of Vetifly Global Inc., following an application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

Justice Yellim Bogoro granted the order on Wednesday after hearing an ex parte motion filed by the EFCC through its counsel, A.M. Dambuwa. The commission told the court that the funds are suspected to be linked to an unresolved investment dispute involving the aviation company.

According to the EFCC, a petitioner invested $1.5 million in Vetifly Global’s aviation business in February 2022, with an agreement that the investment would yield a 100 per cent return within one year.

The commission said Okoh allegedly failed to honour the agreement and left the country with the investment funds, prompting the petitioner to seek the agency’s intervention.

Investigators told the court that an aircraft service agreement was later traced between Vetifly Limited and Xejet Limited, under which Vetifly was to provide funding for air cargo operations while Xejet handled aircraft provision and technical operations.

The EFCC said a transfer of nearly $1.5 million was lodged into Vetifly’s bank account in March 2022, aligning with documents submitted by the petitioner.

Dambuwa urged the court to grant interim forfeiture on the grounds that the $150,000 traced to Okoh was reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity. The judge agreed and ordered that the forfeiture notice be published in a national newspaper to allow any interested party to contest the order.

The court adjourned the matter to February 11, 2026, for a compliance report.