Badagry prince trial: How inheritance divided siblings

A prince of Kwemeland in Badagry, Mr James Adebowale, on Monday narrated to an Ikeja Special Offences Court how his half-brother, Semasa James, allegedly cheated his 26 siblings of a N500 million inheritance from their father, the late Oba Afolabi James. Adebowale was testifying at the resumed trial of Semasa and Afolabi Kazeem over a […]

A prince of Kwemeland in Badagry, Mr James Adebowale, on Monday narrated to an Ikeja Special Offences Court how his half-brother, Semasa James, allegedly cheated his 26 siblings of a N500 million inheritance from their father, the late Oba Afolabi James.

Adebowale was testifying at the resumed trial of Semasa and Afolabi Kazeem over a seven-count charge of conspiracy, cheating, stealing, forging of company resolution, fraudulent disposing of property and forgery.

Adebowale, an Abuja-based businessman, while being led in evidence by the prosecutor of the Police Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Mr O.O. Olabisi, narrated how Semasa, described as the Sole Administrator of their late father’s estate, allegedly abused his position and mismanaged funds.

The witness said that Semasa’s alleged mismanagement of funds and property belonging to the estate of the late king was uncovered by his siblings after he allegedly cheated them out of funds from the sale of the family’s property at Dideolu Estate, Victoria Island,  Lagos.

He said, “My dad died on January 30, 2002. Twenty-seven children survived him and he left a whole lot of valuable property, which I cannot fully mention, in choice areas of Surulere, Ajose Adeogun, Victoria Island and Badagry. My father did not leave a will to the best of my knowledge.

“The first defendant (Semasa) is my half-brother. He is the eighth child of 27 children and the fourth son. He is the only Administrator of the estate and the signatory to the account. Last year, on behalf of the family, I helped the first defendant get a buyer for the family property at Dideolu Estate, Victoria Island. I found a developer and the property was sold for N300 million.

“The money was paid in full and he (Semasa) took half of the money for himself and sent peanuts to the rest of the family. We had agreed on a sharing formula and everyone was to get an equal amount regardless of age.

“The beneficiaries, who were 26, were supposed to get N10m. I received approximately N7m, while others got N5m each. The first defendant kept N190m for himself, while sharing N110m for the rest of us.”

Adebowale told the court that Semasa had, before sharing the proceeds, informed his siblings that he was entitled to N40m from the sale of the Dideolu Estate property and the family decided not to challenge his claim, for the sake of peace.

“We got a real estate developer to work on the property. The family decided that we would give him the N40m and share the rest. But despite our agreement, he kept a substantial part of the funds for himself,” he added.

Adebowale noted that after Semasa allegedly cheated his siblings of their Dideolu Estate inheritance, the family discovered he had illegally leased a property located at Plot 282, Ajose Adeogun St., Victoria Island, Lagos to Ecobank Plc.

While being cross-examined by Mr Martin Oyibo, Semasa’s defence counsel, Adebowale told the court that he and other younger siblings had difficulty accessing funds for their school fees and upkeep when Semasa managed the estate.

During the recess in court proceedings, members of the James family were engaged in a heated disagreement as three women – Mrs Adeola Ogbeyemi, Alhaja Shaki Balogun and Mrs Olabisi Kuku – approached the family’s matriarch, Mrs Bakare, venting their anger on her for signing the petition against Semasa that was sent to the SFU.

Justice Taiwo granted Kazeem, the second defendant who had been remanded in custody since November 12, 2018 bail of N5m, with two sureties in like sum, and adjourned the case until November 28, and December 12 and 13, 2018 for continuation of trial.