The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is beaming its searchlight on suspected fraudsters using real estate for money laundering.
An EFCC lawyer, Chris Mishela, gave the hint in Benin, the Edo capital, at a training for journalists on effective reporting of economic and financial crimes.
“You see so many estates coming all over Abuja and more; the sources of these funds are unlawful,” Mishela noted.
The legal practitioner said most of the funds used to buy land or houses are illegally gotten either from the government or from international crime.
Mishela said the Money Laundering Act had provided an opening for the government to look into the aspect of real estate ownership.
He added that the industry is one of the designated and non-designated professions where people are under obligation to make full disclosure.
“Not that we have identified any specific entity to these proceeds of crime, but we are working to unravel what those areas are,” the lawyer explained.
Mishela further advised the public to be aware of the scope of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 as against the repealed Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011.