Jersey returns over $9.5m looted funds to Nigeria for infrastructure projects

By Favour Ulebor, Abuja

The Bailiwick of Jersey has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Government of Nigeria to return more than $9.5 million in funds identified as proceeds of corruption, to support critical infrastructure projects in the country.

In a statement by the British High Commission on Friday, the funds were confirmed to have been forfeited following a court process and will be repatriated to Nigeria under an agreement signed in December 2025.

According to the statement, on November 29, 2023, the Attorney General of Jersey applied to the Royal Court under the Forfeiture of Assets Civil Proceedings (Jersey Law 2018) in respect of tainted funds held in a Jersey bank account.

On January 12, 2024, the court granted a forfeiture order after ruling that the funds were more likely than not the proceeds of a corrupt scheme involving the diversion of government money for the benefit of senior Nigerian officials and their associates.

The MoU builds on two previous agreements between Jersey and Nigeria, under which more than $300 million has already been repatriated to support three major infrastructure projects, namely the Lagos–Ibadan Expre-ssway, the Second Niger Bridge, and the Abuja–Kano Road.

While the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway and the Second Niger Bridge have been completed, the forfeited funds under the new MoU will be applied to the final stages of the Abuja–Kano Road, a 375-kilometre highway that provides a vital link between Nigeria’s capital and its second-largest city.

Speaking on the development, His Majesty’s Attorney General for Jersey, Mr. Mark Temple KC, said:
“This successful return demonstrates the strength of our civil forfeiture legislation as a powerful tool in the fight against corruption.

I thank the Nigerian authorities for their cooperation and the Economic Crime and Confiscation Unit in my Department for their unwavering commitment to recover the proceeds of crime.”

Also speaking, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi SAN, said:

“The successful recovery and repatriation of the forfeited assets underscores the effectiveness of Nigeria’s collaborative efforts with its international partners in ensuring that there is no safe haven for illicitly acquired wealth or assets moved to foreign jurisdictions.

I want to, on behalf of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, thank the Bailiwick of Jersey for the cooperation accorded Nigeria during the recovery exercise. I want to further assure the Bailiwick of Jersey that the repatriated assets will be judiciously utilized in line with the terms of the executed Memorandum of Understanding.”

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