A Canada-based Nigerian widow, Mrs Abubakre Omotolani Mariam, has appealed to the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, alleging that she is being unjustly denied her lawful share of her late husband’s estate.

Mariam, the widow of the late businessman Michael Adebambi Olusegun, accused the legal department of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) Annex, Alagbon of taking side with a lawyer representing opposing interests in the estate dispute.

Speaking through her counsel, Yinka Sanni, she maintained that she was the deceased’s only legally married wife and could not understand why officials handling the case would disregard evidence that, according to her, supported criminal prosecution.

Sanni said he petitioned the IGP on July 7, 2026, alleging that a forensic report from the FCID had established evidence of forged signatures in documents connected to the estate.

He claimed the report was endorsed by senior officers, including the FCID’s administrative commissioner, and that criminal charges had already been prepared before the matter was later described as a civil dispute by the officer in charge of the legal unit.

According to the lawyer, the petition was subsequently referred to the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the FCID, Mrs Margaret Ochalla, but no resolution has been reached.

He described the development as a miscarriage of justice, alleging that the decision to treat the matter as civil undermined the findings of the police forensic unit.

Sanni also questioned an online publication in which another party to the dispute reportedly congratulated the IGP and the FCID leadership for their handling of the case.

He alleged that the publication was intended to lend credibility to what he described as an improper handling of the investigation.

He insisted that Mariam remains the deceased’s only legally recognised wife, despite the couple not having children together.

According to him, the disputed property was jointly owned by the couple, and after selling it, Mariam shared the proceeds with members of her late husband’s family and his first child from another relationship in line with Lagos State inheritance laws.

Sanni further alleged that Ademola Olabiyi, whom he described as the third lawyer to handle the matter, later obtained a court order challenging the sale of the property.

He claimed the lawyer was acting on behalf of a foreign woman and two children allegedly fathered by the deceased, whom, he said, members of the deceased’s family had never met.

However, Olabiyi rejected the allegations, insisting that Mariam had already been divorced by the deceased before his death.

He said her name had nevertheless been included in the Letters of Administration because the deceased died without leaving a will.

According to him, although Mariam was recognised under the applicable inheritance laws, she had no legal authority to sell the property without the consent of other beneficiaries.

He argued that the building had been acquired before her marriage to the deceased and therefore formed part of the estate to be shared by all entitled beneficiaries.

Olabiyi further maintained that the proceeds from the sale should be distributed among all beneficiaries, including the children of another woman whom he said had children with the deceased, even though she was not legally married to him.

The dispute remains unresolved, with both parties maintaining opposing claims over the ownership and administration of the late businessman’s estate while awaiting further action from the police and the courts. (The Guardian)

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