Court Sentences FCDA Official to 25 Years in Prison for Land Fraud

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja has sentenced a staff member of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Kinsley Eselebor, to 25 years in prison for obtaining money under false pretences and using forged documents in a land fraud case.

Justice A.O. Musa delivered the judgment on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, after finding Eselebor guilty of all five charges filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

According to a statement from the EFCC, the court imposed seven years’ imprisonment each on counts one, two and three, and two years each on counts four and five. However, all the sentences are to run concurrently, meaning they will be served at the same time. The court also ruled that there would be no option of a fine.

How FCDA Official Defrauded Land Buyer

The prosecution told the court that Eselebor, who worked in the FCDA’s Department of Urban and Regional Planning, collected money from Moses Osinachi for two plots of land in Kubwa District Central Annex, Abuja.

The plots, identified as Plots 383 and 424, were allegedly presented to the buyer as genuine properties, even though Eselebor had no title authorising him to sell them.

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The case was initially filed in March 2021 with three charges relating to obtaining money under false pretences. The EFCC later amended the charges to five counts, adding allegations that Eselebor used forged documents as genuine to convince the buyer that the land transactions were legitimate.

Following the trial, the court found him guilty on all five counts and imposed the prison terms.

Court Orders Prison Sentences to Run Concurrently

The court directed that the sentences run concurrently because the offences arose from the same transaction. As a result, the 25-year total of the individual sentences does not mean Eselebor will serve each term one after another.

The conviction followed the EFCC’s prosecution over the land transaction involving the two plots in Abuja. The anti-graft agency announced the judgment in a statement following the court’s decision.