Inside Aisha Achimugu’s dirty deals, a Socialite’s diary of multi-million dollar fraud

A Kogi State born Aisha Suleiman Achimugu and a Lagos based socialite has been in and out of Court this year over her involvement in a multi-million dollar money laundering that topped her as one of the biggest female money launderer of her class in Nigeria’s history.

When the Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja ordered her appearance before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on Wednesday, April 30, 2025, little did anyone know, that the well celebrated socialite and businesswoman was involved in a financial mess in hard currencies.

Empathy from fans, the media and public opinion which tilted in her favour initially was thrown to the wind in a twinkle of an eye as the discreet investigation of Nigeria’s anti-graft agency revealed massive fraud, linking her to banks and questionable transactions that tied to the Lagos State Government Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

Mrs Achimugu, who is the founder of SAM Empowerment Foundation in her deft move to white wash EFCC’s indictment of her, mounted several legal hiccups asserting reasons she shouldn’t appear before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. The counter affidavit deposed by her counsel, urged security agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, the Department of State Services, DSS, the EFCC, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and the Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, not to arrest her.

In documents filed against her, the EFCC acting on behalf of the State, was clear in the lodgement of complaints that Aisha was involvement in ‘conspiracy, obtaining money by false pretense, money laundering, corruption and possession of property reasonably suspected to have been acquired through unlawful means.’

What irked the EFCC was Aisha’s twist in honouring the invitation that was meant to assist the investigation of her suspicious transactions, even as she had been granted an administrative bail on February 12, 2024 after she had written a statement offering clues to how she got involved in the multi0million dollar scam.

In her counter claim, which she chooses as an afterthought, she claimed that the sum of N8.71 billion spotted in her corporate bank account and which was the subject matter of controversy initially was an “investment fund” meant for acquisition of oil block, hence, she went ahead to slam the EFCC with a fundamental rights enforcement suit.

Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited
The socialite admitted to owning the Oceangate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited, but claimed during the EFCC’s earlier interrogation that funds were paid into the Federal Government Treasury through the company after relevant documents were issued by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC.

The investigation of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC contained in an affidavit revealed that Mrs Achimugu paid a whooping sum of $25.3 million via bureau de change operators and that the ultimate sources of the funds could not be traced to any legitimate business income or partnerships to acquire two oil blocks, Shallow Water PPL 3007 and Deep Offshore PPL 302-DO.

The process leading to acquisition of the two oil blocks were confirmed to be without due process, even as it was fraught with kickbacks, bribe and authority stealing, an indictment on the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC.

Mrs Achimugu fights back to no avail
In daring response to the EFCC, Mrs Achimugu filed a lawsuit against the anti-graft agency in attempt to scuttle the investigation and prosecution, claiming fundamental rights violation. This is despite the Federal High Court ruling as contained in suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/451/2024 dismissing her claim. The lawsuit by the socialite signaled legal battle leveraging on weak judicial and corrupt ridden system, but failed anyway.

The dismissal of Aisha’s bid to scuttle EFCC investigations paved way for the anti-graft agency to contact agencies like the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS and banks, Special Control Unit against Money Laundering, Central Bank of Nigeria, where it was discovered that there are more than meets the eyes.

Shockingly, a discreet investigation discovered a total of 136 bank accounts linked to Aisha Achimugu across ten various banks in her personal and corporate entity names, a development that led her summon to appear before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission sometime on April 30, 2025.

Trouble started when an informant covertly working for the EFCC blew the lid open leading the operatives storming a new generation bank’s headquarters and some key staff were quizzed for interrogation.

Meanwhile, as legal fireworks intensified with the declaration of Aisha Achimugu wanted by the EFCC in April.

The Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Providus, Suntrust Banks conspiracies
The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu is said to be a strong ally of the socialite on whose behalf some transactions were coordinated, according to information obtained through interrogation by operatives of the EFCC.

As the EFCC intensified legal fireworks over several funds, it secured temporary forfeiture of the sum of $7 million in a Federal High Court in Lagos, where the Court has jurisdiction over the matter. The money was said to have been deposited in Providus Bank under questionable circumstances.

According to investigations, the cash was deposited in raw currency on March 26 and 27, 2025, directly into the Providus Bank’s vaults at its Victoria Island headquarters rather than being credited to any customer’s account as used to be the bank’s tradition.

During interrogation, EFCC operatives were told the funds belonged to one of the bank’s high-profile clients, businesswoman Aisha Achimugu, Chief Executive Officer of Ocean Gate Petroleum, who is a businesswoman, socialite, ally, and alleged lover of Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

The fund was flagged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission with the aid of a covert informant in the bank as Achimugu, was later invited for interrogation, CAPITAL POST gathered that she denied ownership of such a whooping amount of money, but said, she secured a loan of an amount from the bank and was yet to repay.

The EFCC report was quoted to have said: “The money was deposited under suspicious circumstances in raw cash. Instead of paying it into their customer’s account, the money was deposited into the vaults of Providus Bank, which was unusual and suspicious.

“An anonymous whistleblower who works at the bank and serves as a spy for the EFCC alerted the anti-corruption agency of the unusual transactions that just occurred at the bank.

“Acting on that intelligence, the staff of the EFCC swooped on the Providus headquarters, and the EFCC officials demanded the money, leaving with some bank staff for proper interrogation.

“On further interrogation, the arrested bank staff revealed that the $7 million belongs to one of their biggest customers, Abuja big girl and Governor Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State’s alleged sidekick, Aisha Achimugu, who is also the CEO of Ocean Gate Petroleum.”

“She denied depositing that kind of money, claiming she borrowed $7 million loan from Providus Bank and had yet to pay it back,” a source said.

Confused, the EFCC put up an advert in national newspapers, inviting whoever owned the contentious $7 million to come forward and explain its source.

However, nobody came forward to claim the money.

Faced with conflicting claims, the EFCC published a public notice in national newspapers asking anyone with legitimate ownership of the money to come forward and explain its source.

However, no claimant appeared.

Providus Bank also came under scrutiny for allegedly failing to file a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), despite the nature of the transaction raising multiple red flags.

The EFCC eventually recovered the cash and transferred it to the Central Bank of Nigeria for safekeeping. Following a court application, a final forfeiture order was granted on Monday, transferring ownership of the $7 million to the Federal Government.

The ruling, delivered on Monday by Justice Emeka Nwite, followed an application by the EFCC, which argued that the funds were suspected proceeds of unlawful activities.

Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, counsel for the EFCC, told the court that the commission had fulfilled all procedural requirements after securing an interim forfeiture order on August 27, 2025.

He noted that the order was duly published, inviting any interested parties to appear and show cause why the funds should not be permanently forfeited.

“My lord, since August 27, when your lordship granted the order, to date, we have not received any opposition to our application,” Oyedepo said.

“Hence, we filed a motion for final forfeiture.”

Although a lawyer, Mr. Gbenga Akande, had earlier appeared in court claiming to represent an interested party, he refused to disclose his client’s identity and failed to file any supporting documents.

At the next hearing, Akande was absent, and another lawyer, Darlington Ozurumba, appeared but raised no objection to the EFCC’s application.

Achimugu involved in another $12million money laundering case
Yet again, the sum of $12 million was flagged down in SunTrust Bank in July, 2025, where the matter was dragged to Court and the first prosecution witness in the trial of Bank Executives, Halima Buba and Innocent Mbagwu, confirmed to Justice Nwite of the Federal High Court that the Bank received the sum of $12 million in cash, allegedly facilitated by the defendants, for onward transfer to Aisha Achimugu’s bank accounts.

The EFCC is prosecuting Buba, the Managing Director/Chief Executive, and Mbagwu, the Chief Compliance Officer of SunTrust Bank, on a six-count charge bordering on money laundering involving $12 million.

Testifying before the court, the First Prosecution Witness (PW1), a bureau de change operator, told the court that between March 10 and 24, 2025, he received $12 million in cash from Aisha Achimugu.

The transactions, according to the witness, were facilitated through the Abuja and Lagos branches of SunTrust Bank.

While being led in evidence by EFCC counsel, Oyedepo (SAN), the witness said, “None of the money went through my account,” despite having both naira and dollar accounts with the bank.

He stated that the transactions were executed outside the formal banking process.

“It was on social media that I heard that Aisha Achimugu had been arrested and I forwarded it to the first defendant.

“I can also recall that after meeting Aisha Achimugu, she has also given me a total of $1.8 million for conversion into naira and they were in tranches,” the witness added.

Negotiations to end EFCC probe against Aisha Achimugu
There were spirited efforts to water down the probe of conspiracies as the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu was said to have got involved in negotiation that would lead to a soft landing of the socialite, Aisha Achimugu.

On behalf of the Lagos State Governor, a high powered delegation from the Lagos Governance Advisory Council (GAC) led by its chairman, Alhaji Tajudeen Olusi, were dispatched and reportedly pleaded on behalf of the governor as he was spotted in the process as revealed by the EFCC investigation.

How Aisha Achimugu was declared wanted
Within the provisions of Money Laundering Act, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on March 5, 2025 summoned Aisha for interrogation, but she flew out of the country between 6th and 7th instead.

In response to her unknown whereabouts, the anti-graft agency through Court obtained an order to declare her wanted.

She was later arrested by the EFCC on Tuesday, April 29, 2025, and released on bail following a court order.

Unconfirmed financial assistance to opposition figures
Speculations around Achimugu, pointed out that she made huge funds available to opposition figures, in the last 2023 presidential election, particularly Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, claims that the EFCC said, was not party of their mandate.