Drawcok Estates Limited has issued a stern warning and signalled a N100 billion legal action against FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited and First Trustees Limited over what it described as the wrongful and forceful seizure of Nestoil Towers, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The company said the FBN Parties “wrongfully, whether by error or otherwise,” obtained an order purporting to seal or assume control of the property in Suit No. FHC/L/CS/2127/2025 filed against Nestoil Limited.
Drawcok insisted that it is not the judgment debtor in that suit and that the property is legally owned by it, while Nestoil and Neconde are tenants.
According to Drawcok, a purported Receiver, Abubakar Sulu-Gambari, SAN, has been taking actions that infringe on Drawcok’s proprietary rights despite the company not being a party to the debt dispute.
The company said armed police officers sealed Nestoil’s headquarters in late October following the order, an action it described as an unlawful takeover of a property it owns.
Drawcok cautioned the public to disregard any communication whether from GTBank, its lawyers, the FBN Parties, Sulu-Gambari, or any other individual, claiming authority to sell, mortgage, transfer or lease the property. “Any person or entity entering into any commercial arrangement relating to the sale, purchase, lease, licence or transfer of interest in the property does so entirely at their own risk,” it stated.
The firm maintained that any such transaction will be viewed as null, void and unenforceable, stressing that the legal doctrine of lis pendens applies since multiple suits and appeals are ongoing at the Court of Appeal.
It reiterated the principle of caveat emptor and insisted that “Nestoil Towers is not available for sale, lease, mortgage or any similar transaction, and any advertisement or offer suggesting otherwise is fraudulent and should be ignored”.
The dispute forms part of a wider commercial battle in which FBNQuest Merchant Bank and First Trustees obtained ex parte Mareva and receivership orders to secure an alleged debt exposure of about $1.012 billion and ₦430 billion said to be owed by Nestoil and Neconde Energy as of September 30, 2025.
Drawcok has maintained that the attempt to take over its Victoria Island office complex amounts to an infringement on its rights and will be resisted through legal action.
