Section 94: Freezing Order on banks and other financial institutions

(1)
Notwithstanding anything contained in any other enactment, where any person is arrested or is under investigation for an offence under this, Act or any other relevant law, the Comptroller-General of lmmigration may, if satisfied that the money in the account of an arrested person is made through the commission of an offence under this Act or any other relevant law, apply to the Court ex parte for an order authorising the Service to issue or instruct a bank examiner or such other appropriate regulatory authority to issue an order as specified in Form B of the Schedule to this Act, addressed to the manager of the bank or any person in control of the financial institution where the account is or believed by him to be or the head office of the bank or other financial institution, to freeze the account:
Provided the freezing order shall not be in place for a period longer than is necessary or expedient for the determination of the case.
Schedule.
(2)
The Comptroller-General of Immigration or bank examiner may by an order issued under sub-section (1) of this Section, or by any subsequent order, direct the bank or other financial institution to supply any information and produce books and documents relating to the account and to stop all outward payments, operations or transactions, including any bill of exchange, in respect of the account of the arrested person or a person under investigation.
(3) The manager or any other person in control of the bank or a financial institution shall take necessary steps to comply with the requirements of the order made pursuant to sub-sections (1) and (2) of this Section.
(4) In this section-
(a) "Bank" has the meaning given to it in the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, CAP B3, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, as amended ; and
(b) the reference to an order issued includes a reference to any order, direction or requirement addressed to the manager of a bank or any other officer of a bank which directs or purports to direct the manager or such officer to stop all outward payment, operations transactions in respect of any account with that bank.