The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has highlighted how assets recovered from proceeds of crime are being converted into institutions serving the public, with one forfeited private university in Kaduna State now operating as a federal university and another high-value institution in Kebbi recently handed over to the Federal Government.

The Chairman of the EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, disclosed the development in a video and accompanying post shared on his official X account on Friday, saying the recovery and conversion of such assets demonstrated how law enforcement could deliver benefits beyond the punishment of offenders.

One of the major examples, he said, was the former NOK University in Kachia, Kaduna State, which was finally forfeited to the Federal Government and subsequently converted into the Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia.

“A university seized from crime is now a federal university. The recovered campus in Kaduna State became the Federal University of Applied Sciences, and in December 2025, 1,909 students matriculated there. Young people who, in the ordinary course of things, would never have seen the inside of a lecture hall,” he said.

Olukoyede said the institution was expected to make a significant contribution to the economic and educational development of its host community and the wider Southern Kaduna region.

The EFCC chairman also revealed that another private university described as a high-value asset had recently been finally forfeited to the Federal Government.

Drawing attention to the scale of the property, Olukoyede referred to the facilities developed for the institution, including what he described as an exceptionally large residence built for its vice-chancellor.

“You need to get to that university in Kebbi It has temporary site and permanent site.

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“The house that was built for the vice-chancellor alone is probably bigger than the president’s house in the villa. The picture is all over the place. If you Google it now, you will see the pictures,” he stated.

Although Olukoyede did not mention the name of the university in his post, his description of an institution with temporary and permanent campuses is consistent with Rayhaan University in Kebbi State.

The EFCC had secured the final forfeiture of the university and several other properties linked to a former Attorney-General of the Federation on July 15, 2026. The forfeiture reportedly covered the institution’s permanent and temporary sites, an additional site, its radio station and a residence constructed for its vice-chancellor.

Olukoyede said the recovery of the universities formed part of a broader effort by the Commission to ensure that assets traced to criminal enterprises were returned to productive use.

According to him, the EFCC had secured the forfeiture of thousands of assets since October 2023, covering a wide range of properties and equipment.

“Beyond cash, between October 2023 and July 2026 we secured the forfeiture of 10,053 assets: real estate, land, vehicles, electronics, schools, factories, hotels, oil rigs, barges, machinery and aircraft, along with 102 tonnes of solid minerals. Disposals so far have returned ₦12.07 billion to the Federal Government,” he added.

The EFCC boss said the impact of the recoveries went beyond the value of the assets themselves, arguing that they also strengthened public revenue, protected the integrity of the financial system and discouraged criminal activity.

He described the approach as one in which recovered assets could be redirected towards meaningful public benefit.

“This is what enforcement looks like when it moves beyond punishment. Every asset taken from a criminal enterprise lowers the reward for the next one — and some of it comes back as a classroom,” he added.

The remarks are part of a broader performance report recently presented by Olukoyede, in which the Commission said it recovered ₦1.233 trillion, alongside various foreign currencies, and secured 10,872 convictions between October 2023 and July 2026.

The conversion of forfeited institutions into facilities that can serve Nigerians, particularly in the education sector, represents one of the clearest examples of the EFCC’s effort to ensure that assets recovered from unlawful activities are returned to productive use for the benefit of the public.

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