Female Lawyer Faces Disciplinary Panel Over Alleged Abuja Land Fraud Linked To Barewa Old Boys Association
Legal practitioner Stella Oyiogu has been summoned before the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) over allegations of willful misconduct concerning a disputed plot of land belonging to the Barewa Old Boys Association (BOBA) in Abuja.
The case, which has drawn the attention of prominent Nigerian statesmen, including General Yakubu Gowon, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Saad Abubakar III, and the Lamido of Adamawa, Alhaji Barkindo Aliyu Mustafa, involves accusations of fraudulent land transfers.
Oyiogu and other defendants, including Abuja-based land developer Linus Ukachukwu, former BOBA Secretary-General Ahmed Tijani Mora, and Ibrahim Salmanu, are facing a five-count charge filed by the police for conspiracy, forgery, and fraudulent conversion of property.
The disputed land, originally allocated to BOBA in 1983, was allegedly transferred to Haida Properties in 2007 and later reallocated to Eagle Aluminum, owned by Ukachukwu, in 2009—without the knowledge of the BOBA Board of Trustees (BOT) led by General Gowon.
In 2012, Mora allegedly acted on behalf of BOBA without the consent of the association’s National Executive Committee (NEC) or the BOT, surrendering the land to Eagle Aluminum. The association only became aware of the loss in 2017 and successfully appealed to then-Minister of the FCT, Mohammed Bello, to restore its title.
However, Haida Properties and Eagle Aluminum had already entered into a legal agreement to jointly develop the land. Following a petition by BOBA’s new leadership, police investigations uncovered alleged misconduct by past officials, leading to charges of fraud and conspiracy against the accused.
Oyiogu is specifically accused of filing fraudulent court processes in 2013, misrepresenting her authority to act on behalf of BOBA, and deceiving the court into stripping the association of its land rights.
The case underscores a broader controversy over the management of BOBA’s assets, with allegations of internal sabotage and obstruction of police investigations. The defendants are expected to face trial at an FCT High Court.
