The Federal government has filed three criminal charges against a prominent lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, over alleged forgery and the use of false documents in a long-running UK property dispute.
Court documents show that the charges, filed under case number FCT/HC/CR/010/2026, were submitted on Friday, 17 January 2026, at a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja, on behalf of the Attorney-General of the Federation.
Prosecutors allege that Mr Ozekhome knowingly presented forged documents, including a Nigerian international passport, during proceedings before the UK First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to support his claim of ownership of a property located at 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX.
According to the charge sheet, the alleged offences occurred in August 2021, partly in London and partly in Abuja, placing the matter within the jurisdiction of the Nigerian courts.
The three counts include; Receiving property obtained through false representation, contrary to Section 13 and punishable under Section 24 of Nigeria’s Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, Making a false document, namely a Nigerian passport bearing the name Shani Tali, contrary to Section 363 of the Penal Code of the Federal Capital Territory, punishable under Section 364 and Using a forged document as genuine, despite allegedly knowing it was false, contrary to Section 366, also punishable under Section 364 of the same law.
The prosecution is being handled by officials of Nigeria’s Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
The government has listed multiple witnesses, including investigators and an official of the Nigerian Immigration Service, and plans to tender several documents as evidence.
These include the judgment of the UK tribunal, extra-judicial statements, correspondence from relevant authorities, and passport and identity records linked to the name Shani Tali.
The criminal case follows a UK tribunal ruling on a dispute involving the London property, which had competing claims from individuals identified as “Mr” and “Ms” Shani Tali, as well as Mr Ozekhome. In its decision, the tribunal concluded that neither individual existed and ruled that the property was linked to a retired Nigerian army officer, now deceased.
No trial date has been fixed, and Mr Ozekhome has yet to make a public response to the charges.
