| (Abuja, 31 March 2026) – New findings by the Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa (PPLAAF), the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), and Premium Times have identified properties in the United States (US) that family members of former Nigerian official ‘Prof. Dibu’ Ojerinde sought to place in trusts, around the same time his Nigerian assets were subject to forfeiture proceedings, PPLAAF said today.
Professor Ojerinde is an education expert who has served as head of two of Nigeria’s leading agencies responsible for administering national exams, including the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB). He is facing two cases, opened in 2021 and 2023, predominantly for abuse of office and the diversion of public funds in Nigeria. He is currently being prosecuted before a Federal High Court in Abuja, along with three of his children, his daughter-in-law, and six companies linked to the family.
Investigations revealed that the month before an Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) notice for the forfeiture of a number of Prof. Ojerinde’s assets in Nigeria and Ghana was published, his sons and daughter-in-law filed to place two Florida properties into trusts. Property records obtained by PPLAAF, OCCRP, and Premium Times show exactly where, when, and how Ojerinde’s family members bought the real estate, as well as their attempts to transfer ownership of them. These findings fit into a wider investigation by PPLAAF into PEPs accused of the misappropriation of funds attempting to conceal their ownership of properties abroad.
“The investigations into Ojerinde confirms a pattern in the financial behaviour of PEPs accused of financial crimes and connected to real estate at home and abroad,” said Olanrewaju Suraju, Chairman of the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA). “Such clear similarities demonstrate the need for close cooperation between authorities at all levels, as well as between civil society and the media. PEPs linked to property purchases should have their financial behaviour screened for flags of illicit practices.”
From Nigerian Forfeiture Orders to American Trusts
PPLAAF’s investigation identified the purchase of a property in Miramar, Florida, for USD 380 000 by Prof. Ojerinde’s son, Olumide Abiodun Ojerinde, and his wife, Mary Funmilola Ojerinde. According to court documents, Ojerinde is accused of transferring the bank accounts of two companies, who are also named co-defendants in his corruption trial, to his daughter-in-law in March 2015, one month before this property purchase. Another property in Miami, Florida, was bought by Olumide and his brother Oluwaseun in 2017 for USD 300 000. The two properties are now worth a total of USD 1.2 million.
In addition to charges linked to the diversion of at least 5.2 billion naira (around USD 13 million) from public agencies, the ICPC also accused Prof. Ojerinde of attempting to “disguise the true ownership” of numerous properties. In a similar vein, shortly before the publication of the ICPC forfeiture notice, the Miramar property was transferred to the ‘Lenciaga Land Trust’, which was registered at the Miami address. On the same day in May 2019, the Miami-Dade property was filed to be transferred to the ‘Venchy Land Trust’, also, registered at the Miami address. Trusts are legal arrangements that can shield the ultimate beneficiaries of properties from public disclosure.
Escaping Reporting Obligations and Bypassing Biometrics
PPLAAF’s investigations reveal that neither the ‘Lenciaga’ or ‘Venchy’ Trust deeds indicate the identity of their beneficiaries, making them functionally anonymous. Both deeds also indicate that the properties were transferred as gifts, suggesting that the transfers were not market transactions. The combination of these elements suggests an attempt to obscure the ownership of the properties.
A new Residential Real Estate Rule was quickly struck down by a Texas Federal Court shortly after it came into effect in the US this month. PPLAAF conducted analysis of the rule which imposed reporting obligations on non-financed transfers of residential real property to trusts. Such analysis suggests that the transfers of the two Florida properties would have satisfied the criteria to trigger reporting obligations if the rule had been in force at the time.
“The financial conduct revealed in this case displays all the hallmarks of the kind of transfer which should be subject to stringent reporting obligations”, said Jimmy Kande, PPLAAF’s Executive Director. “By striking the new rule down so quickly, the Courts in Texas have blocked an important tool which could have prevented financial crimes from slipping through the cracks”.
PPLAAF calls on the American and Nigerian authorities and regulators to investigate these cross-border financial structures, and take immediate action against those who use them to evade accountability for siphoning off millions needed for Nigeria’s prosperity.
About PPLAAF
The Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa is a non-governmental organisation established in 2017 to protect whistleblowers, advocate for them, and engage in strategic litigation when their revelations affect the general interests of African citizens. |
