‎Ali Baba evicted from Victoria Island property over court dispute

Veteran Nigerian comedian Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, popularly known as Ali Baba, has been evicted from his luxurious, multi-million-naira property located in Victoria Island due to a court dispute.
‎
‎The property, which was purchased for ₦220 million by Ali Baba, is the subject of an ownership dispute at the Federal High Court.
‎
‎Amid the legal dispute, Ali Baba and his company, XQZMOI TV, were evicted from the property located at 324A Akin Ogunlewe Street.
‎
‎The eviction was carried out by bailiffs of the Federal High Court following a writ of possession signed on August 15, 2025.
‎
‎The property in question was initially sold to Ali Baba by the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) in 2021 for ₦220 million.
‎
‎At the time, AMCON claimed it was recovering debts allegedly owed by Harold Expansion Industries Nigeria Limited.
‎
‎But Harold Expansion disputed the debt and counterclaimed that they had already made repayments. Their lawyer, Benjamin Olayiwola Sadibo, insisted that the property was sold wrongfully.
‎
‎On July 31, 2025, Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa of the Federal High Court delivered a verdict that changed everything as he dismissed AMCON’s case, ruling that the corporation had failed to provide convincing evidence of the alleged debt.
‎
‎The Justice stressed that AMCON did not even present a statement of account to back its claims — a fatal omission for a creditor. Worse still, AMCON did not file a defence against Harold Expansion’s counterclaim, leaving the court with no choice but to side with the company.
‎
‎In addition to ordering the property to be returned to the family of its original owner, the judge also imposed ₦500 million in damages on AMCON.
‎
‎Ali Baba’s culpability in the case came as a result of the timing of the purchase. Records show that he purchased the property while the case was still in court, despite an existing preservation order.
‎
‎He was said to have been a tenant of the property’s original owner before AMCON evicted the family and sold it.