Ex-Bank Chief, Tunde Ayeni drags ex-mistress to court over blackmail
Former chairman of the now-defunct Skye Bank, Tunde Ayeni, has filed a legal action against his ex-mistress, Adaobi Alagwu, accusing her of blackmail after he ceased providing her with a monthly allowance of N5 million in October 2024.
Appearing before the Federal Capital Territory Customary Court in Abuja, Ayeni claimed that Alagwu resorted to threats and manipulation after he stopped the payments and requested that she vacate a property in Jabi valued at N400 million, which he had placed under her trusteeship.
“This court is asked to rule on the respondent’s erroneous belief that she is married to the petitioner,” Ayeni’s lawyer, Joseph Silas, stated in court. “This belief has allowed her to continue blackmailing him after he discovered that the child she claimed was his is not biologically related to him.”
The legal conflict between the two stems from a paternity dispute regarding Alagwu’s daughter. While Alagwu maintains that a DNA test conducted in the United Kingdom confirmed Ayeni as the father with a 99.9999997% probability, Ayeni has rejected these test results, alleging manipulation.
In his suit, Ayeni is seeking a court declaration that he is not the child’s father and that no marital relationship exists between him and Alagwu. His lawyer also asserted that the dowry originally paid to Alagwu had been refunded, indicating that no customary marriage had been established.
“The matter before this court is not about determining the petitioner’s statutory marriage with his wife,” Silas explained. “It is about declaring that no marriage exists between the petitioner and the respondent, following the return of a dowry paid in ignorance of the respondent’s native law and custom.”
However, Alagwu’s lawyer, T.G. Okechukwu, filed a preliminary objection, arguing that the court lacks jurisdiction to hear the case. “We urge the court to dismiss this suit because it no longer has jurisdiction,” Okechukwu stated.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the three-member panel, presided over by Justice Adlin Achoru, adjourned the matter until March 11 for a ruling. Read More
