Ozekhome: Immigration Officer Tells Court ‘Tali Shani’ Passport Not Issued By NIS

An official of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) on Friday told a Federal Capital Territory High Court that the agency did not issue a Nigerian passport bearing the name “Tali Shani.”

The officer, Aridegbe Akim, made the disclosure while testifying as the first prosecution witness in the trial involving a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, and Ponfa Useni, son of the late former FCT Minister, Jeremiah Useni.

While giving evidence before the court, Akim said the passport with number A07535463, purportedly belonging to Tali Shani, was not issued by the immigration service.

“The passport was not issued by the Nigerian Immigration Service. It is not in our database… the passport belonging to Tali Shani is fake,” he told the court.

The witness said the immigration service received a request from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to authenticate two passports belonging to Ponfa Useni and Tali Shani.

According to Akim, checks carried out on the immigration service database showed that one of the passports was genuine while the other did not originate from the NIS.

“After checking our records, we discovered that one of the passports was not issued by the NIS while the other, belonging to one Useni, was issued by the NIS,” he said.

He added that the findings were subsequently communicated to the anti-graft agency.

During the proceedings, the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), tendered the EFCC’s request for authentication of the passports and the NIS response.

The defence counsel did not object to the admissibility of the documents.

Explaining how Nigerian passports are issued, the witness told the court that applicants must first complete an online payment before their details are generated on the NIS database.

He said applicants are also required to submit supporting documents, including their National Identification Number.

According to him, Nigerian passports are encrypted in line with International Civil Aviation Organisation standards, allowing border authorities to access biometric information.

“Once you insert a name, it brings out the particulars and history of that person, but on inserting this Tali Shani, no record was found,” Akim said.

He added that there was also no record of payment for the alleged passport.

NIS Disowns Letter From Alleged Officer

Akim further told the court that the immigration service also received a request from the EFCC to verify a letter allegedly written by Abdulkadir Lawal, who claimed to be associated with the agency.

He said checks conducted by the service revealed that no such person existed in its records.

The witness said the search covered the service’s legal unit, nominal roll and the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System.

“We checked our records and there was no staff bearing that name,” he said.

According to him, a team set up by the Comptroller-General of Immigration later concluded that the letter did not originate from the service.

“The letter written by the same Abdulkadir Lawal never represented the NIS. It means the letter is fake,” he added.

Correspondence between the EFCC and the immigration service relating to the matter was admitted as evidence by the presiding judge, Chizoba Oji.

However, Tayo Oyetibo (SAN), counsel to Ozekhome, and E. R. Onoja, lawyer to the second defendant, said they would reserve their objections until the final address.

During cross-examination, Oyetibo asked the witness about his role within the immigration service.

Akim said he became a principal staff officer in December 2023 and had been on foreign posting outside Nigeria before July 2023.

At the end of the proceedings, Oyetibo requested more time to continue cross-examining the witness. Justice Oji subsequently adjourned the matter until April 15 for continuation of the trial.

Background To The Case

Ozekhome and Useni were arraigned on February 27 before the FCT High Court in Maitama on a 12-count charge.

They both pleaded not guilty and were granted bail in the sum of N10m each, with a surety in like sum who must own property within the FCT.

The case centres on a property located at 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX.

The property dispute involves claims by Ozekhome and a person identified as “Tali Shani.”

Ozekhome told a UK tribunal that he received the house as a gift from “Mr Tali Shani” in 2021.

However, lawyers representing “Ms Tali Shani” insisted she was the rightful owner and presented documents including an obituary notice, a National Identification Number card, an ECOWAS passport and other materials.

The UK tribunal later ruled that the documents submitted were fake and concluded that neither “Mr” nor “Ms” Tali Shani existed, dismissing all claims over the property.