EFCC Fights Back Over Ex-Warri Refinery MD’s Assets

​The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has escalated its legal battle regarding the forfeiture of assets and funds linked to Jimoh Olasunkanmi Yisawu, the former Managing Director of the Warri Refining & Petrochemicals plant in Delta State.

​The anti-graft agency formally filed a notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal in Abuja to contest a Federal High Court judgment delivered on November 9, 2026. The lower court ruling had previously blocked the Commission’s bid to secure a final forfeiture order on multiple properties and significant cash sums tied to the former official.

​Core Contentions of the Appeal

• ​Failure to Evaluate Evidence: Filed by lead counsel Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, the appeal argues that Justice J.K. Omotosho erred in law by refusing to properly weigh and analyze the concrete evidence presented by the prosecution.
• ​Unexplained Cash Outflows: The central question raised by the prosecution focuses on how a public servant with documented public sector earnings managed to dispense over $912,550 in cash.
• ​Foreign Exchange Transfers: Court records indicate that between 2021 and 2025, Yisawu allegedly handed over a total of $912,550—valued at over ₦1.5 billion—to foreign exchange dealers Samaila Bala and Rasheed Olaitan Yusuf for conversion into naira.

​Financial Discrepancies and Asset Development

​According to the EFCC, the scale of financial transactions far exceeds the respondent’s declared income. Official declarations show that Yisawu held ₦647,205.36 and $12,779.26 in cash and bank balances as of September 17, 2020. His total salaries and allowances spanning October 2020 to September 2023 amounted to ₦114,548,024.48.

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​The Commission maintains that the respondent failed to establish how legitimate earnings were converted into the foreign currency handed to the forex dealers. Furthermore, investigators allege that:

• ​The dealers indirectly funneled ₦282,542,000 toward the development of two disputed properties.
• ​Bala reportedly paid ₦65,860,000 in three tranches to Cordros Securities Ltd on February 21, 2024, for treasury bills.
• ​None of these substantial financial maneuvers have been credibly linked to legal sources of income.

​While Yisawu is also facing a separate criminal trial in another jurisdiction, the lower court had previously held that he offered sufficient justification for the funds used in developing the properties and acquiring treasury bills. The EFCC is now urging the appellate court to set aside that decision and grant a final forfeiture of all contested assets and funds to the Federal Government.