The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has raised more than N6.1 billion from the public auction of properties forfeited by convicted drug traffickers, led by a six-storey luxury hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos that attracted a winning bid of N5.9 billion in what the agency described as one of the most significant asset recovery exercises in its recent operational history.
Four properties were successfully sold during the auction conducted in Abuja, with Tope Ojo and Tunde Olonishakin Estate Firm securing the Victoria Island hotel. FSS Limited paid N219.5 million for a Lekki Phase 1 property, A-BNB Global Innovations Limited paid N104 million for a block of flats in Ejigbo, and Fazeen Global Link Limited acquired a property in Akure for N29.36 million. Bids for four other properties fell below approved reserve prices and were rejected.
NDLEA Chairman Buba Marwa, represented by the agency’s Secretary Shadrach Haruna, said the auction was more than a revenue exercise, describing it as a strategic weapon in the campaign against organized crime. He said the disposal of recovered criminal assets sent a clear message to drug trafficking networks that involvement in the illicit drug trade would not produce permanent personal wealth and that any fortune built on narcotics could be traced, seized, and converted to public benefit.
Marwa said the process was conducted with rigorous safeguards including professional valuation by the Federal Ministry of Housing, pre-qualification of auctioneers through Bureau of Public Procurement procedures, and open observation by anti-corruption agencies, civil society, the media, and the general public, all designed to ensure the integrity of the outcome. The auction was conducted in compliance with the Proceeds of Crime Recovery and Management Act 2022 and the Public Procurement Act 2007.
