US Law Firm Lose $163,592 To FG As EFCC Secures Final Forfeiture Of Funds

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the final forfeiture of $163,592 fraudulently obtained by one Akpasi Michael Oziegbe through an alleged impersonation and international fraud scheme involving a United States-based law firm. The forfeiture order was granted on Friday, November 6, 2026, by Justice M. S. Liman of the Federal High Court, Abuja, following an application by the EFCC. Prosecution counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, led the EFCC legal team to secure the forfeiture order.

Deciding on the non-conviction order, the court held that Oziegbe failed to establish ownership of the said funds. Justice Liman held that the accused illegally procured the services of the law firm to secure the settlement sum from a company he was not an employee of. The money, which was traced to the domiciliary account of Micoz Bluelink Enterprise, operated by Oziegbe, was fraudulently obtained from the United States-based company, Applied Industrial Technologies, through the impersonation of one Edward Campbell.

Investigations by the EFCC had revealed that Oziegbe impersonated Campbell, a former employee of the company who had sustained an accident while on duty, to deceive the Law Firm of Steven J. Mandel & Co. into facilitating the fraudulent release of settlement funds. According to information obtained from the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the law firm received a request for legal representation on June 27, 2022, from an individual identifying himself as Edward Campbell. Acting on the instructions, the law firm transferred $163,592 to the designated account on July 20, 2022. The money was subsequently credited to the domiciliary account of Micoz Bluelink Enterprise with United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc.

The EFCC’s investigation, however, established that the funds originated from the alleged fraudulent transaction involving the American law firm and were not legitimate proceeds of any supply transaction, as claimed by Oziegbe. The Commission also established that Oziegbe failed to provide relevant documents to substantiate his claim that the money represented payment for materials supplied to the United States. The EFCC’s Extractive Industry Fraud Section (EIFS) commenced investigations following a petition received in May 2024 from GAIA & Montgomery Legal on behalf of Oziegbe. The Commission had earlier secured an order freezing the account on September 9, 2024, and an interim forfeiture order on August 15, 2025, directing that the money be finally forfeited to the Law Firm of Steven J. Mandel & Co. through the Federal Government of Nigeria.