NIS disowns passport tendered in UK property case linked to Useni, Ozekhome

The Nigeria Immigration Service on Thursday disowned a Nigerian passport tendered in proceedings in the United Kingdom in relation to a disputed London property linked to the late former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Jeremiah Useni.

An official of the NIS, Aridegbe Akim, told a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, that the passport allegedly issued in the name of Tali Shani was not recognised in the agency’s database.

Akim, who identified himself as Principal Staff Officer to the Comptroller-General of Immigration, testified as the first prosecution witness in the trial of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, and Ponfa Useni over alleged forgery, impersonation and related offences.

He said, “But, on inserting the name of Tali Shani, no record was found.”

The witness explained that the NIS maintains electronic records of all passports issued, noting that once a name is entered into its system, it generates the holder’s details and history.

He further told the court that the passport number presented — A07535463 — did not pass through the established process of issuance, which includes payment, documentation, enrolment and production.

Akim said the service’s database contains comprehensive records of all passports issued, adding that the process also involves the capture of the National Identification Number and other biometric data.

Under cross-examination by defence counsel, he acknowledged that the passport in question bore similarities to genuine Nigerian passports but insisted that each passport carries a unique number traceable in the system.

The witness also stated that the NIS operates a structured system in which all issued passports are logged and verifiable, stressing that no such record existed for the passport tendered in the foreign proceedings.

Ozekhome and Useni are being prosecuted by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation on a 12-count charge bordering on alleged forgery of documents, including an international passport and an irrevocable power of attorney, as well as impersonation.

The prosecution alleged that the defendants, alongside the late Useni, between 2020 and 2021, forged a Nigerian passport in the name of Tali Shani and used it to support a claim to a property located at 79 Randall Avenue, London.

One of the counts reads “That you, Chief Mike Agbedor Abu Ozekhome, SAN, Ponfa Useni, and General Jeremiah Useni (now deceased), sometime between the 30th day of May, 2020, and 2021, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, made a false Nigerian International Passport No. A07535463 with the name Tali Shani, and purported same to have been issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service with the intent of using the same to support your claim of ownership to a property known as No. 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2, United Kingdom, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 363 of the Penal Code Act CAP 532 Laws of the FCT 2006 and punishable under section 364 of the same Act.”

The charges also allege that Ponfa Useni allegedly impersonated a fictitious person, Tali Shani, and executed legal documents, including a power of attorney, to facilitate the claim.

Following the conclusion of the day’s proceedings, counsel to the prosecution applied for an adjournment to enable the presentation of additional witnesses, a request that was not opposed by the defence.

The trial judge, Justice Chizoba Oji, subsequently adjourned the matter till May 18, 2026, for continuation of hearing.