By Olaleke ASHAFA
A Badagry princess, Mausi James-Alakija of Kweme land, Lagos State, on Thursday accused her brother, Semasa James, of misappropriating over N500 million from the estate of their late father, Oba Afolabi James.
Giving evidence before an Ikeja Special Offences Court, Lagos, James-Alakija said that her brother could not account for property in his trust from their late father’s estate.
TBI Africa said the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Semasa and Afolabi Kazeem are being prosecuted by the Police Special Fraud Unit on seven counts of conspiracy, cheating, stealing, forging of company resolution, fraudulent disposing of trust property and forgery.
Led in evidence by Mr O. O Olabisi, the SFU prosecutor, Alakija-James accused her older brother, one of the administrators to their late father’s estate, of mismanagement of funds and property.
She said: “Our father died on Jan. 30, 2002, he left behind 26 children, three are deceased. He left behind property in areas such as Surulere, Lagos Island and vast land in Badagry.
“There are four administrators to the estate – Bolarinwa James, Justice Adeniji who are both late, my brother, Semasa and myself.
“I was one of the administrators, I go through receipts, oversee the welfare of the younger children.
“I used to be a signatory to the estate account, but in 2009 I was on the hospital bed and I gave instructions to the first defendant to be the sole signatory to the account.
“I later made an unsuccessful attempt to be reinstated as a signatory to the account in 2017, I went to the bank but I was asked to get a letter from the first defendant.
“There was a day I went to meet him (Semasa) I said our siblings are grumbling about the management of the estate, you have to give account of the property.
“He told me to meet the second defendant (Kazeem) and they never rendered account of the management of the property.”
The princess alleged that her brother mismanaged N300 million, which was the proceeds from the sale of a family property located at Dideolu Estate in Victoria Island.
“We had a meeting on Jan. 1, 2016 and we decided to sell some property; the first defendant said we owed him N40million and he said that for a lot of the properties, their documents were incomplete but that of the Dideolu Estate property was complete.
“The family agreed that we owed him (Semasa) N40 million from the sale of the Dideolu property but that he will spread the remaining proceeds among the children.
“Two weeks after the sale, I received N5 million. Alarmed, I called the other siblings to inquire what was happening and N795,000 was later sent to me by the first defendant.
“He was supposed to give each person N9 million plus but instead, the children received about N5 million each,” she said.
According to the SFU, the first defendant fraudulently converted N500 million property belonging to the late king, Oba Afolabi James between 2000 and 2017 in Lagos.
The prosecution alleged that Semasa fraudulently sold a property located at Plot 1440, Ilesanmi St., Itire Road, Surulere, Lagos to a private individual and illegally leased another property located Plot 282 Ajose Adeogun St., Victoria Island, Lagos to Ecobank Plc.
Semasa also allegedly forged some purchase receipts of his late father’s property, the prosecutors said.
Also, the SFU said that Kazeem’s alleged role was as an accomplice in defrauding the late king’s estate.
Kazeem allegedly connived with Semasa to defraud the beneficiaries of the late king’s estate of N150 million, which was part of the proceeds of sale of a property located at Dideolu Estate, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The offences, the prosecution said, contravened Sections 383(1), 383(2)(f), 390(9), 421, 434, 465 and 467 of the Criminal Code, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo adjourned the case until Feb. 1 for continuation of hearing.
