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The Nigerian Government has auctioned a Lagos hotel and three other properties confiscated from drug kingpins for a total of ₦6.148 billion.
The properties were forfeited to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) following court-ordered seizures linked to drug trafficking cases.
According to NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the sale followed a competitive bidding exercise involving eight assets recovered from drug barons across the country.
“While bidders, who offered above the reserved prices, emerged as winners of four of the listed properties, bids for four others failed because none offered up to the reserved prices,” he said.
At the auction held at the NDLEA headquarters in Abuja, the Head of Asset Recovery and Management Unit of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Tamarantare Ali-Bozi, announced that an estate firm owned by Tope Ojo and Tunde Olonishakin secured a six-floor hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos, for ₦5.9 billion.
Other successful bids included FSS Limited, which acquired a property in Lekki Phase 1 for ₦219.5 million, A-BNB Global Innovations Limited, which won a block of flats in Ejigbo for ₦104 million, and Fazeen Global Link Limited, which purchased a property in Akure for ₦29.36 million.
NDLEA Chief Executive Officer, Brig-Gen Mohamed Marwa (retd), represented by agency Secretary Shadrach Haruna, said the auction underscored the importance of asset recovery in combating drug crime.
He said public auctions reinforced public confidence in the justice system and ensured that proceeds of crime do not remain in the hands of offenders.
Marwa also reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to dismantling drug networks and ensuring transparency in the management of recovered assets.
According to him, the exercise complied fully with the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act, 2022, the Public Procurement Act, 2007, and other relevant regulations.
He added that all assets were professionally valued by the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, while auctioneers were screened to ensure integrity and compliance.
The NDLEA said the process was conducted openly, with the participation of civil society groups, media representatives, bidders, and other stakeholders, to ensure transparency and accountability.
