EFCC INVESTIGATES REAL ESTATE HOLDINGS FOR MONEY LAUNDERING

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is focusing its attention on suspected fraudsters who use real estate to launder money.

Chris Mishela, an EFCC lawyer, dropped the clue at a seminar for journalists on effective reporting of economic and financial crimes in Benin, the Edo capital.

"You see so many estates coming all over Abuja and more; the sources of these funds are unlawful," Mishela noted.

According to the legal practitioner, the majority of the monies used to purchase land or houses are obtained unlawfully, either from the government or via international crime.

Mishela stated that the Money Laundering Act provides an opportunity for the government to investigate the issue of real estate ownership.

He went on to say that the sector is one of the designated and non-designated professions in which persons are required to give complete disclosure.

"Not that we have identified any specific entity to these proceeds of crime, but we are working to unravel what those areas are," the lawyer explained.

Mishela further cautioned the public about the scope of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, as opposed to the abolished Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011.