$2.1m Land Deal: Claimants Petition EFCC Over Wike’s Son, Demand Probe Into Alleged Fraud

• Petitioners allege failed Abuja land transaction involving Katampe and Guzape; Jordan Wike denies claims as civil suit continues

Two companies have petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over an alleged $2.1 million land transaction involving Jordan Nyesom-Wike, son of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, asking the anti-graft agency to investigate allegations of fraud, misappropriation and obtaining money under false pretences.

The petitioners, Safwan Garba GY and GY Global Oil & Gas Nigeria Limited, said they approached the commission after an alleged agreement to facilitate the acquisition of land in Abuja failed to materialise.

Their lawyer, Ibrahim Waru, told journalists at the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja that although the EFCC had acknowledged receipt of the petition, his clients were yet to receive a substantive update on the matter.

Waru said the petition was intended to trigger an investigation into the alleged criminal aspects of the dispute, which is also the subject of a civil suit before the FCT High Court.

According to the petition, the disputed transaction involved an alleged payment of $2.1 million, comprising $2 million said to have been intended for land-allocation facilitation and an additional $100,000 described as a personal facilitation fee.

The claimants allege that the money was paid in connection with proposed land acquisitions in Katampe and Guzape, two locations in Abuja.

Claimants allege cash payment and failed land arrangement

In the petition, the claimants alleged that Garba first met Jordan Wike in London, where they established a relationship before discussing a proposed property transaction in Nigeria.

They said Jordan subsequently represented that he could facilitate the acquisition of 30 hectares of land in Katampe and another 30 hectares in Guzape.

The petition further alleges that Jordan referred to his father, the FCT minister, in discussions about the proposed arrangement and placed a telephone call to him in the presence of the claimant.

The claimants maintain that the alleged representations influenced their decision to proceed with the transaction.

They further allege that the money was paid in cash at a residence in Gwarinpa, Abuja, on September 26, 2025, in the presence of witnesses.

According to their lawyer, supporting materials submitted with the petition included correspondence, WhatsApp exchanges and an acknowledgement of payment which the claimants attribute to Jordan.

The petition alleges that the promised land allocations were not delivered within the agreed period and that subsequent attempts to contact Jordan proved unsuccessful.

The claimants are asking the EFCC to investigate the allegations, interrogate the defendant and consider prosecution if the investigation establishes criminal liability.

The allegations have not been established by a criminal court.

Jordan Wike denies allegations

Jordan Wike has denied the allegations in the civil proceedings, maintaining that he was not in Nigeria on the date the claimants said the money was handed over to him.

During earlier proceedings, he presented his American passport to support his account that he had travelled outside the country.

He has also disputed the claimants’ account of the transaction, according to reports of the court proceedings.

The dispute therefore centres not only on whether the proposed land arrangement was concluded, but also on the circumstances of the alleged payment, the authenticity and interpretation of the documents presented, and the parties’ competing accounts of their dealings.

Those issues remain matters for determination through the judicial process.

Civil case adjourned as petitioners seek EFCC action

The civil suit, marked CV/008/2026, is before Justice Silvanus Oriji of the FCT High Court.

The court has fixed December 1 for further proceedings in the case.

Meanwhile, the claimants have asked the Chief Judge of the FCT High Court to reassign the suit to another judge, citing concerns about a possible relationship between the presiding judge and the family of the FCT minister.

The allegation concerns the petitioners’ request for a transfer of the case and should not be interpreted as an established finding of judicial bias.

The civil proceedings and the EFCC petition are separate processes. While the court is considering the parties’ claims in the dispute over the alleged transaction, the petition asks the anti-graft agency to examine whether the circumstances disclose criminal offences.

Any decision on criminal liability would depend on the evidence gathered and the outcome of the appropriate legal proceedings.

The case has attracted public attention because it involves a close relative of a serving senior government official and allegations concerning access to land in the Federal Capital Territory.

For now, the central questions remain unresolved: whether the alleged payment was made as claimed, what agreement governed the proposed transaction, and whether the evidence supports the allegations presented to the EFCC.