Tuesday, September 23, 2025 - In his petition, Sowore sought the forfeiture and prosecution of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, over illicit property acquisitions in the United States.
A former presidential candidate and activist, Omoyele
Sowore, has petitioned the Attorney General of Florida, Hon. James Uthmeier.
In his petition, Sowore sought the forfeiture and
prosecution of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom
Wike, over illicit property acquisitions in the United States.
According to Sahara Reporters, the petition dated September
22, 2025, and signed by his lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, Esq., Sowore accused Wike of
secretly purchasing multi-million-dollar real estate in Florida using
suspicious cash transactions designed to conceal the source of funds.
According to the petition, Wike, a former Rivers State
Governor, alongside his wife, Justice Eberechi Suzzette Nyesom-Wike of
Nigeria’s Court of Appeal, purchased three luxury lakeside properties in Winter
Springs, Seminole County, Florida, valued at over $6 million.
The petition listed the properties as 113 Springcreek Lane,
Winter Springs, FL 32708, which is a 5,000 sq. ft. residence purchased in cash
for $535,000 and transferred to Jordan Wike (25); 209 Hertherwood Court, Winter
Springs, FL 32708, which is a 3,401 sq. ft. home acquired for $459,157 in cash
and transferred to Joaquin Wike (23); and 208 Hertherwood Court, Winter
Springs, FL 32708, which is a 3,901 sq. ft. home bought for $465,000 in cash
and transferred to Jazmyne Wike (20).
Sowore’s lawyers said the purchases were executed through
quit claim deeds between July 2021 and September 2023 and transferred directly
to Wike’s children. They argued that the cash-only acquisitions bypassed
banking oversight and raised “serious money laundering concerns.”
The petition alleges that Wike failed to declare these
foreign assets to Nigeria’s Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) as required under the
Constitution.
It further noted that his legitimate income as a public
servant since 1999 could not sustain such multi-million-dollar acquisitions.
Adeyanju argued that the transactions violated both Florida
state law and U.S. federal anti-money laundering statutes, specifically citing
the Florida Money Laundering Act (Chapter 896.101, Fla. Stat.), the Florida
Contraband Forfeiture Act, and federal laws under 18 U.S.C. §§ 1956 and 1957.
He also referenced the U.S. Department of Justice
Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative, which targets assets linked to corrupt
foreign officials.
"The U.S. Department of Justice's Kleptocracy Asset
Recovery Initiative, launched in 2010, provides a ready mechanism for action in
these kinds of cases, where corrupt foreign officials launder stolen public
wealth into the United States under the guise of ordinary family
transfers," he said
“Although the named grantor in the quitclaim deeds is his
wife, Honourable Justice Eberechi Suzzette Nyesom-Wike, it is evident that the
acquisitions and subsequent transfers to their children were undertaken in
concert with her husband,” the petition said.
“In any case, Honourable Justice Eberechi Nyesom-Wike's
position as a senior judicial officer and justice of the Court of Appeal of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria renders the transactions no less troubling, as her
legitimate income could not reasonably sustain multi-million-dollar cash
purchases of luxury homes in Florida.”
Beyond Florida, Sowore alleged that Wike, in his capacity as
FCT Minister, has been involved in “large-scale land grabs” in Abuja,
allocating over 3,800 hectares valued at $6.45 billion to his children through
shell companies and proxies.
“These acquisitions in Florida by Mr. Ezenwo Nyesom Wike,
CON, are not isolated acts. They form part of a pattern of corruption that Mr.
Wike has cultivated throughout his career as a public servant and
politician,” the petition stated, accusing Wike of using U.S. real estate
as a safe haven to conceal the proceeds of illicit enrichment
“Most recently, as Minister of the Federal Capital
Territory, he has been credibly accused of allocating thousands of hectares of
the capital's most valuable public lands to his sons, Jordan and Joaquin,
through shell companies and proxies.”
In his petition, Sowore urged the Florida Attorney General
to investigate the source of funds used in the acquisitions, commence
forfeiture proceedings against the identified properties in Seminole County,
institute criminal prosecution against all parties involved in the transactions
and impose visa bans and sanctions on Wike to prevent further abuse of U.S.
territory.
Adeyanju said his client was ready to provide additional
documents, testimonies, and collaborate with U.S.-based counsel to support the
petition.
Sowore concluded that failure to act would amount to the
U.S. providing a sanctuary for corruption proceeds.
“The people of Nigeria have been impoverished for decades by
the diversion of public funds,” the petition read. “It would be a
perversion of justice if those funds, siphoned through abuse of office, are
allowed to flourish in Florida’s real estate market.”
The petition was also copied to the U.S. Attorney General,
Pam Bondi, and the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Richard M. Mills, Jr.
Attached to the letter were reports published by Peoples
Gazette, along with quitclaim deeds showing how Wike and his wife, Eberechi, a
Justice of the Court of Appeal, transferred their Florida properties into the
names of their children between 2021 and 2023
0 Comments