The Finnish police have stated that Simon Ekpa, the self-acclaimed leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), will remain in custody until his trial.

The police further explained that the Finnish legal system does not allow for bail due to the nature of the offence he is being held for.

On November 21, law enforcement in the northern European nation arrested the pro-Biafra agitator.

He was subsequently sent to prison by the district court of Päijät-Häme for “spreading terrorist propaganda on social media”.

Ekpa is alleged to have committed the crime in 2021 in Lahti municipality.

He faces accusations of instigating violence and inciting terror in the south-east of Nigeria through his social media platforms.

The federal government has been seeking Ekpa’s extradition, as he holds dual citizenship in Finland and Nigeria, for prosecution.

Additionally, Ekpa is scheduled to face charges in May 2025.

When asked whether Ekpa’s charges were bailable, Mikko Laaksonen, a senior detective superintendent at Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation, replied in an email to PUNCH on Saturday: “Finnish criminal procedure/coercive measures do not recognise bail procedure.”

“Our procedure is based on, depending on the case, remand or travel ban as coercive measures for limiting the freedom of movement for persons suspected of offences to which such measures are applicable,” he added.

Wema Bank, Nigeria’s most innovative bank and pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank, ALAT, has reaffirmed its dominance by emerging as the Overall Winner at the just-concluded Nigeria Bankers Game (NBG) 2024 Grand Finale. This remarkable achievement marks the bank’s third consecutive win at the prestigious sporting event.

With an impressive tally of 10 gold medals. Wema Bank clinched victories across various categories, including Table Tennis (Female Singles, Doubles, and Mixed Doubles), Volleyball, Scrabble, Video games, 100m Female, 200m Female, and the 4x100m Female Relay.

This year’s NBG also celebrated individual brilliance, with Bukky Olorunmaye, one of Wema Bank’s standout athletes, earning the title of Nigeria Bankers Game 2024 Female Athlete of the Year. Her outstanding performance across multiple disciplines underscores her dedication and resilience, making her a shining example of excellence.

The Nigeria Bankers Game serves as a platform to foster camaraderie, teamwork, and a spirit of healthy competition among Nigeria’s leading banks. It brings together athletes and staff across the financial sector to compete in various sports, showcasing the resilience, talent, and unity that define the industry.

For Wema Bank, this year’s stellar performance further solidifies its reputation as a champion both on and off the field. Through its success in sports, the bank highlights its commitment to promoting teamwork, discipline, and resilience—qualities that also define its daily operations and customer-first approach.

Moruf Oseni, Managing Director/CEO of Wema Bank, expressed his pride in the achievement, stating:

“Winning the Nigeria Bankers Game for the third time in a row is a remarkable accomplishment that reflects the resilience, teamwork, and dedication of our staff. At Wema Bank, we are not just about financial innovation; we are enablers of dreams and champions of holistic development. This victory underscores our belief in empowering our people to excel in every aspect of life. Congratulations to all our athletes for their exceptional performance. We remain committed to fostering excellence in every endeavor.”

Reacting to her recognition as the Female Athlete of the Year, Bukky Olorunmaye shared:

“I am incredibly honored to receive this recognition. Competing alongside so many talented individuals and representing Wema Bank has been a humbling and fulfilling experience. This award is not just mine—it belongs to my teammates and everyone who supported us. Together, we demonstrated the power of teamwork, and I am grateful to Wema Bank for giving us this platform to shine.”

Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie, on Monday, 2 December 2024, delivered a ruling on the final forfeiture of an estate in Abuja measuring 150,500 square metres, containing 753 units of duplexes and other apartments.

This marks the single largest asset recovery by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) since its establishment in 2003.

The estate is located on Plot 109 Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja.

The forfeiture of the property to the federal government by a former senior government official follows the EFCC’s mandate and policy to ensure that individuals involved in corrupt and fraudulent activities do not benefit from the proceeds of their crimes.

In this case, the Commission relied on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud-Related Offences Act No. 14, 2006, and Section 44 (2) B of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999) to pursue its case.

Ruling on the Commission’s application for final forfeiture, Justice Onwuegbuzie stated that the respondent failed to demonstrate why the property should not be forfeited, declaring that, “which has been reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities, the property is hereby finally forfeited to the federal government.”

The path to this final forfeiture was paved by an interim forfeiture order, secured before the same judge on November 1, 2024.

The government official responsible for the fraudulent construction of the estate is under investigation by the EFCC.

The forfeiture of this asset is a crucial method of depriving the suspect of the proceeds of their criminal activities.

The legal basis for the forfeiture is found in Part 2, Section 7 of the EFCC Establishment Act, which grants the EFCC the power to “cause investigations to be conducted as to whether any person, corporate body or organization has committed any offence under this Act or other law relating to economic and financial crimes and cause investigations to be conducted into the properties of any person if it appears to the Commission that the person’s lifestyle and extent of the properties are not justified by his source of income.”

The Commission’s Executive Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, has consistently emphasized the importance of asset recovery in the fight against corruption, economic, and financial crimes, describing it as a significant deterrent against corrupt and fraudulent individuals.

Speaking before the House of Representatives Committee on Anti-Corruption recently, he stated, “If you understand the intricacies involved in financial crimes investigation and prosecution you will discover that to recover one billion naira is war. So, I told my people that the moment we start investigation we must also start asset tracing because asset recovery is pivotal in the anti-corruption fight; and one of the potent instruments that you can deploy as an anti-corruption agency for an effective fight is asset tracing and recovery. If you allow the corrupt or those that you are investigating to have access to the proceeds of their crime, they will fight you with it. So one of the ways to weaken them is to deprive them of the proceeds of their crime. So, our modus operandi has changed simultaneously. The moment we begin investigation, we begin asset tracing. That was what helped us to make our recoveries.”

The EFCC Establishment Act places significant emphasis on asset recovery.

Under Section 24 of the Act, “whenever the assets and properties of any person arrested under the Act are attached, the Commission shall apply to the court for an interim forfeiture and where a person is arrested for an offence under the Act, the Commission shall immediately trace and attach all the assets and properties of the person acquired as a result of such economic and financial crime and shall thereafter cause to be obtained an interim attachment order from the Court. And where the assets or properties of any person arrested for an offence under the Act has been seized or any assets or property has been seized by the Commission under the Act, the Commission shall cause an application to be made to the Court for an interim order forfeiting the property concerned to the Federal Government and the court shall, if satisfied that there is prima facie evidence that the property concerned is liable to forfeiture, make an interim order forfeiting the property to the Federal Government, which the Commission would usually escalate to earn a final forfeiture.”

This procedure was duly followed in this case.

The recovery of this asset represents a milestone in the operations of the EFCC and serves as indisputable proof of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to the anti-corruption fight.