Jersey’s Royal Court has ruled that stolen assets amounting to £6.9 million ($8.9 million) can be repatriated to Nigeria.
The decision follows a forfeiture notice served by Jersey’s Attorney General in November.
The court found that the funds, deposited in a Jersey bank account, were likely stolen by Nigerian government officials in 2014.
The money, initially disguised as government-sanctioned contracts for arms purchases during Boko Haram incursions from 2009 to 2015, is believed to have been diverted through foreign bank accounts and shell companies.
The return of these assets will be negotiated with the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The Attorney General’s office emphasized that the recovered funds would be returned to the victims of the crime, showcasing the effectiveness of the 2018 Forfeiture Law in combating corruption and restoring misappropriated funds.