The Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has arraigned a director in the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Alabi Collins, alongside Julius Eshiet and Al-Trade Agencies Limited, before the Lagos State High Court over alleged forgery, land grabbing, and illegal occupation of prime property in Ikeja GRA.
The defendants face a 13-count charge relating to the disputed property at Block C, Plots 30 and 37, No. 6 (formerly No. 37A) Ajisafe Street, GRA, Ikeja.
According to court filings, the case originated from a petition filed on July 1, 2024, by Viagem Property and Investment Limited. The company accused the defendants of forceful takeover, malicious damage, and presenting forged documents to justify their occupation of the land.
The property, measuring 9,425 square yards, has a long history of lawful transfers: leased in 1961 to Nigerian Enamelware Company by the Western Region Government, reassigned in 1993 to Western Metal Products Company Limited (WEMPCO), and finally sold to Viagem in 2019. Viagem said it occupied the land peacefully until 2021, when armed thugs allegedly backed by the defendants violently evicted its staff.
Investigators said the defendants later produced documents purporting that the land was federal property, including an allocation letter dated October 16, 2021, a 2003 lease application, and a Certificate of Occupancy allegedly signed by former Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola. But police records showed consistent land use charge payments by WEMPCO and Viagem to the Lagos State Government, with no trace of federal ownership prior to the 2021 claims.
The Lagos State Task Force had earlier marked the property as “under investigation,” but the defendants were accused of removing the official signpost.
Justice Idowu of High Court 55, Ikeja, ordered Julius Eshiet remanded in police custody, while Alabi Collins’ counsel sought adjournment on medical grounds. The case continues on Friday, September 12, 2025.
