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A couple who orchestrated a Ponzi scheme defrauding 27 investors of N18.88 billion have been discovered to own luxury properties in Dubai, UAE, Economy Post has revealed. Bamise Ajetunmobi and his wife, Elizabeth, were ordered by the Lagos High Court to repay the defrauded investors.
Justice Toyin Oyekan-Abdullahi of the Lagos High Court ruled on July 15, 2022, that the Ajetunmobis must pay N18.88 billion to the investors who sued them and their company, Imagine Global Solution Limited. The ruling mandated the payment of N15.5 billion with 10 percent annual interest to the first 17 claimants and N3.38 billion with the same interest rate to the remaining claimants.
This revelation emerged from the “Dubai Unlocked” investigation, a six-month probe into the UAE’s secretive property market by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and over 70 media partners. Economy Post participated in the project, led by Managing Editor Odinaka Anudu.
The investigation utilized leaked property records from January 2022, provided by the Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS), a U.S. nonprofit, and shared with international media outlets. It unveiled how powerful figures, including the Ajetunmobis, acquired prime real estate in Dubai.
The Ajetunmobis promoted their scheme as a micro-lending service for small and medium businesses, promising a 10 percent return on investment. They initially attracted investors from their personal network and rapidly expanded their clientele. The company’s client base grew from 30 to nearly 100,000, and the loan portfolio soared from N5 million to N11 billion within five years.
The scheme collapsed in August 2021 when the Ajetunmobis could not meet the promised returns, reducing the ROI to 7 percent in a bid to manage payouts. They eventually fled Nigeria to evade legal consequences and disgruntled investors.
The Lagos High Court intervened on October 28, restraining the couple from accessing funds in 21 Nigerian banks. In January 2023, the court ordered their apprehension, leading to their arrest in Ivory Coast in March 2023 while attempting to flee to the UK. Bamise is currently detained by the Force Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (FCIID) in Lagos, while his wife remains at large.
The couple expressed interest in an out-of-court settlement on March 13, 2024. However, Economy Post’s investigation found that Bamise owns properties at Marina Vista Tower 2 and Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, valued at significant square footage.
Efforts to reach Bamise for comments were unsuccessful.
This case highlights the intricate web of fraudulent schemes and the international assets acquired by those involved, raising concerns about regulatory oversight in property markets globally.
Credit: Economy Post
