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Seyi Tinubu, the son of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the incoming president of Nigeria, reportedly purchased a London property that was previously the subject of a fraud probe by the Nigerian government.
According to Bloomberg, the property was purchased by Seyi's company, Aranda Overseas Corp, for $10.8 million (more than $5 billion at the current official exchange rate) in 2017 and is associated with the biggest corruption investigation carried out by President Muhammadu Buhari's administration.
The prior owner of the home, Kolawole Aluko, was wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the time of the acquisition on suspicion of dodging a $1.5 billion oil trading debt.
A year before the sale, Aluko had lost the home to the bank in a foreclosure, but the property was one of many that a Nigerian court had authorized the EFCC to seize in 2016 on the grounds that the businessman had obtained them illegally.
No Evidence Related to Tinubu
There is no evidence of Bola Tinubu's participation in the purchase of the property, despite the fact that Olajide Omokore, a well-known suspect tied to multiple corruption investigations, was exonerated of all charges during a court hearing in February 2023.
However, nearly four years after Seyi's business purchased the property, Buhari paid him a visit in August 2021 at the home.
According to Bloomberg, inquiries to Seyi and his father's spokesperson were unanswered. In addition, the British attorney designated as Aranda's representative in the UK declined to comment since it would violate confidentiality laws.
