Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has obtained a final forfeiture order for a Hawker private jet connected to a sprawling money laundering and contract fraud scheme involving the Maiduguri Emergency Power Project. Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, granted the order on Monday, May 18, 2026, ruling that Valiente Jet Limited, the company claiming ownership of the aircraft, failed to prove that the funds used to purchase it came from a lawful source. The jet, a Hawker 800XP with model number 800XP, serial number 258553, and registration number 5N‑AMK, was first seized under an interim forfeiture order on November 13, 2025.
The case originated from an intelligence report that uncovered a web of bribery, bid‑rigging and money laundering tied to contracts awarded by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for the Maiduguri Emergency Power Project. According to an affidavit filed by Aminu Abdullahi, an EFCC investigator, the contracts were valued at $114,148,155 and ₦23,172,969,904. The central figure in the scandal is Abdulsalam Mustapha Kachallah, who at the time was Chairman of the Borno State Rural Electrification Board and a member of the project’s steering committee. The EFCC alleged that Kachallah used his position and his close ties to NNPCL officials to extract illicit payments from the Chinese construction firm China Machinery Engineering Company (CMEC).
Investigators discovered that Kachallah sold privileged bidding information about the project to CMEC and subsequently helped the company secure three contracts worth $52,120,172 and ₦20,213,956,953. Part of those contract proceeds was funnelled through a Bureau de Change operator, Afuwa Integrated Services Limited, under the false pretence that the company had been subcontracted to provide legitimate services. On Kachallah’s instruction, CMEC transferred $2,070,000 into Afuwa Integrated Services’ Stanbic IBTC Bank account. Investigators later found that forged invoices had been prepared to make it appear as though Afuwa Integrated Services had actually performed work for CMEC. Instead, the money was sent to a Brazilian account to purchase the Hawker jet.
Kachallah then orchestrated a transfer of the aircraft’s ownership to Valiente Jet Limited, a company he also controlled, and forged documents to make the transaction appear legitimate. When the EFCC published the interim forfeiture order in a national newspaper, Valiente Jet Limited filed an affidavit asking the court to set aside the order and release the jet. Kachallah’s legal team argued that the payments made to CMEC were based on a legitimate consultancy contract between his company and the Chinese firm. They also maintained that Kachallah was a different legal person from his companies and that the veil of incorporation should not be lifted.
The EFCC, represented by Iheanacho Ekele (SAN) and O.S. Ujam, countered that Kachallah had violated several provisions of the ICPC Act as well as the Money Laundering and Prohibition Act. They argued that because the transactions involved fraud and illegality, the court was entitled to lift the corporate veil and examine the conduct of the individual behind the company. Citing the case of Oyebanji vs State, the EFCC argued that the documents attached to its affidavit did not need further certification, relying on the precedent of Aondoakaa vs Obot and Anor, Musa vs Jika.
Justice Nwite sided with the anti‑graft agency. In his ruling, he noted that Kachallah was a public officer appointed by the Borno State Government and that the evidence showed he had abused his position to enrich himself. “The interested party has not demonstrated with evidence the lawful origin of the funds used to purchase the aircraft,” the judge held. He also pointed to the “disguised manner through which the aircraft was acquired using the name of a Bureau De Change operator who denied knowledge of the nature of the transaction.” That denial, he said, further supported the unlawfulness of the entire transaction.
The EFCC has described the final forfeiture as a major victory in its ongoing investigation into the Maiduguri Emergency Power Project. The Commission has already recovered billions of naira from other contractors implicated in the scandal, and officials have indicated that criminal charges may be filed against Kachallah and other suspects. A senior EFCC source told reporters that the Commission is working with international partners to trace other assets linked to the scheme, which may include properties in Dubai and London.
The Maiduguri Emergency Power Project was conceived as a lifeline for a city that had been repeatedly cut off from the national grid due to Boko Haram attacks on power lines. Instead, it became a trough for corrupt officials who turned emergency funds into private jets and luxury living. The forfeiture of the Hawker jet will not restore the money stolen from the project, but it sends a signal that the EFCC is willing to go after even the most powerful individuals and claw back their ill‑gotten gains. As for Kachallah, he now faces the prospect of both civil forfeiture and criminal prosecution. The jet that once carried him across continents will soon be sold, and the proceeds will be paid into the Federal Government’s coffers. Justice Nwite has spoken, and the aircraft that took off with public money has finally been grounded.
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