UK Court Orders Forfeiture of Property Linked to Senator’s Wife — Abigail Katung Appeals Ruling
Abigail Katung, wife of Nigerian senator Sunday Marshall Katung, says she has filed an appeal against a UK High Court ruling that ordered the forfeiture of a £1 million property in Leeds to the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA). The ruling, which followed a civil recovery case brought by the NCA, affects a house located at Sandmoor Drive in the upscale Alwoodley area of Leeds. The court found that Mrs Katung had no legitimate legal interest in the property, which the NCA accepted title to in 2020 as part of a £10 million settlement with a businessman suspected of laundering illicit funds. Questionable Transactions Court documents reviewed by PREMIUM TIMES, which first broke the story, revealed that Mrs Katung had entered into an agreement in 2015 to purchase the property, paying £400,000 of the agreed £1 million price to the original owner. However, the court found that most of the deposit was transferred from Nigeria via a Bureau De Change — what Mrs Katung herself described as a “parallel” or “black” market foreign exchange channel. Justice Jay, who presided over the case, ruled that Mrs Katung provided insufficient and unreliable evidence to support her claim to the property. He stated the court was “not satisfied that she was a particularly reliable witness,” and described “telling omissions” in her testimony. The judgment concluded that she was “conducting a business in foreign exchange transactions to circumvent Nigerian foreign exchange regulations and/or to avoid a punitive exchange rate.” No Credit for Payment, NCA Entitled to Damages The High Court ruled that Mrs Katung had no legitimate claim to the property and would not be credited for the £400,000 payment. The NCA is also entitled to damages for her occupation of the property since 2020 and to recover court costs. In a reaction reported by The Punch, Mrs Katung maintained her innocence and confirmed she had filed an appeal. “There is no point in disguising my upset at the terms of the judgment,” she said. “I intend to appeal on both the facts and the law.” She added that she had made “full disclosure” of the case to the Leeds City Council before the ruling became public, and stressed, “I have not sought to hide away.” Political and Legal Fallout Mrs Katung, who became Leeds’ first lord mayor of African descent in May 2024, has lived in the city since 2000 and represents the Little London and Woodhouse ward. The Labour Party confirmed to the BBC that an internal investigation is underway. A spokesperson for Leeds City Council said it was reviewing the High Court’s judgment but declined to comment further. Meanwhile, Senator Sunday Katung defended his family against allegations of wrongdoing. A statement from his spokesperson, Midat Joseph, said the couple “have always conducted their affairs lawfully and transparently” and would pursue legal action “to correct this defamatory narrative.” Rob Burgess, Head of Asset Denial at the NCA, welcomed the ruling. “The court’s finding here will allow us to fully recover a property we accepted title to in 2020, ensuring that a substantial sum can be returned to the public purse,” he said. The appeal filed by Mrs Katung will be considered by a higher court in due course.