Businesswoman Aisha Achimugu has pushed back hard on claims that EFCC agents found $13 million in her home, saying operatives recovered only $50,000 and N13 million during their raid.
Speaking Monday on Channels Television, Achimugu called the $13 million figure “not true” and insisted she doesn’t stash bank-level cash at home.
“I’m not a bank, so I wouldn’t keep $13 million in my house. I have children studying abroad, so keeping some foreign currency for emergencies is normal,” she said. The N13 million, she added, belonged to her mother.
The EFCC declared Achimugu wanted last year over alleged criminal conspiracy and money laundering. In March, the Federal High Court in Abuja granted final forfeiture of $13 million linked to her company, Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Ltd, to the Federal Government.
The Commission alleges Oceangate teamed up with unlicensed BDC operators and bank officials to move large cash sums suspected to be illicit proceeds. The money was allegedly used to pay signature bonuses for two oil blocks secured in 2024.
Achimugu declined to go deep on the $13 million, citing the ongoing court case. “I won’t go into details because the matter is in court, and I believe in the judicial system. But I must correct the impression that $13 million was found in my house. That is not true,” she said.
She also took a swipe at the EFCC’s website, saying she didn’t consider it a valid legal document and noting that some published details, including the state referenced, were unclear.
On the oil blocks, Achimugu said Oceangate won them clean. The firm bid in two Federal Government licensing rounds — deep offshore between 2022 and 2023, and a mini bid round between 2023 and 2024 — and came out on top.
“We went through the process and, by the grace of God, we won transparently. It was open and not selective,” she said.
Court has already forfeited $13 million. Achimugu says only $50,000 was in her house. The numbers — and the truth — are now before the judge.
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