Property owners raise concern over alleged land title laundering

Property owners and developers in Lagos State have raised the alarm over what they described as a new dimension of land fraud involving the use of forged and backdated documents into the state’s land registry.

The group, which described the practice as “Land Title Laundry” (LTL), alleged that fraudulent historical title documents were being introduced into official records to create the impression that they were genuine, thereby facilitating transactions, including applications for Governor’s Consent.

Speaking at a press briefing in Lagos, Group Managing Director, CFL Group, Mr Lai Omotola, said the practice posed a serious threat to genuine property owners and financial institutions that rely on land titles as security for loans.

According to him, the scheme involves identifying abandoned or high-value properties, particularly in areas such as Ikoyi and Victoria Island, and producing purported historical title documents in the names of deceased persons.

He alleged that the documents were subsequently inserted into the official land registry system, making them appear authentic.

“Once the document is ready, they have staff in Alausa working in the Land Registry that will insert the documents into the system. Immediately this is achieved, the title document will automatically become the original,” he alleged.

Omotola further alleged that perpetrators of the scheme sometimes relied on documents purportedly dating back several decades, particularly where original records were difficult to trace.

He said the perpetrators could then declare the purported original documents missing and obtain police affidavits to support applications for replacement or subsequent title documents.

The property owners also stressed the need to distinguish between a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) and Governor’s Consent, arguing that the latter signifies the governor’s consent to a transaction involving an existing interest in land and does not, by itself, establish the validity of the root of title.

They maintained that the issuance of Governor’s Consent could not cure an underlying defect, fraud or forgery in the root of title.

The group cited a dispute involving a property at 24 Adeola Odeku Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, as an example of what it described as the alleged operation of the scheme.

According to the property owners, a company accompanied by policemen visited the property and sealed it, claiming ownership on the basis of a Governor’s Consent.

They said subsequent investigations led them to the family of the late Samuel Oladele Ige, whom the claimants allegedly identified as the original owner of the property.

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The group alleged that members of Ige’s family told them that he died in 2012, raising questions over documents purportedly executed in his name in 2015.

They further claimed that the family denied knowledge of any property belonging to Ige at the disputed address and rejected the authenticity of a purported police affidavit in which he was said to have declared his original land certificate missing.

According to the group, the family also disputed the photograph and signature contained in the affidavit.

The property owners further alleged that a letter of objection purportedly written by Ige in 2015 was submitted to the Lands Registry before the disputed Governor’s Consent was released, despite his alleged death three years earlier.

Consequently, they issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Registrar of Lands to deregister the disputed Governor’s Consent, threatening legal action and a N5 billion claim for damages if the demand was not met.

“We hereby issue a seven-day ultimatum to the Registrar of Lands to deregister this consent or face legal suit requesting damages of N5 billion because the title which they wrongly issued is what they have used to dispossess us of our land and continue to construct on the land,” the group said.

The property owners called for an urgent investigation into the alleged practices within the land administration system, insisting that genuine property owners should not become victims of fraudulent title transactions.

They also urged the Lagos State Government to strengthen verification mechanisms at the Lands Registry and ensure that historical land documents are properly authenticated before being entered into official records.

They said such measures would help protect property owners, financial institutions and investors from fraudulent land transactions.

When contacted for his reaction, the state commissioner for information, Gbenga Omotosho, didn’t respond to inquiries sent to his line.