A Nigerian woman who was officially recorded as deceased in 2019 has appeared in court via videolink from Nigeria to prove she is alive and reclaim her £350,000 London home from a convicted fraudster.
June Ashimola, 55, was legally declared dead in February 2019, leading to a lengthy legal battle over her estate. However, she shocked the High Court by appearing before Deputy Master John Linwood to confirm she was very much alive.
The court heard that Power of Attorney over her estate had been fraudulently granted to associates of Tony Ashikodi, a convicted fraudster. In 2022, control of the estate was transferred to a Ms. Ruth Samuel on behalf of one “Mr. Bakare Lasisi,” who claimed to have married Ashimola in 1993.
However, the judge ruled that Lasisi did not exist and that Ashimola had been the victim of an elaborate scam.
Ashimola, who left the UK for Nigeria in 2018 and had not returned, told the court that reports of her death were fabricated. A false death certificate had been produced, and there were allegations that another woman had been impersonating her.
“This is an unusual probate claim in that the deceased says she is very much alive,” Deputy Master Linwood remarked.
The judge ruled in Ashimola’s favor, concluding that Ashikodi orchestrated the fraud and attempted to mislead the court.
Despite visa issues preventing her from attending in person, the judge accepted Ashimola’s identity, confirming it with passport photos.
The ruling nullifies the fraudulent claim over her London home, restoring her rightful ownership.
According to court documents, one of the most startling revelations was that Ashimola’s supposed husband, Mr. Lasisi, did not actually exist—despite multiple emails allegedly sent in his name.
“I find that Ms. Ashimola is alive and that the death certificate was forged and/or fraudulently obtained, produced, or fabricated,” the judge stated.
He further ruled that her alleged death was part of Ashikodi’s scheme to seize control of the property.
“The person who appeared before me and identified herself as Ms. Ashimola bore a strong physical resemblance to the photographs in her passports,” the judge noted.
The court also determined that Ashimola was never married to Lasisi and that the marriage certificate was a fraudulent document.
“I do not accept that Mr. Lasisi exists—or, if he does, that he was aware his identity was being used. I also do not accept that the emails purportedly from him were actually sent by him,” the judge stated.
The probate Power of Attorney, supposedly issued by Lasisi and Samuel, was deemed fraudulent.
“The death certificate was not proven to the required standard, as only a copy was presented with no known provenance. There was no evidence before me that it was a genuine document representing a real event. I find it was forged and/or fraudulently produced. Those who relied on it—Mr. Tony Ashikodi and Ms. Samuel—were either directly involved in its creation or knew it was false,” he concluded.
As a result, Deputy Master Linwood revoked the fraudulent Power of Attorney.
The court also heard that the legal battle had already resulted in “disproportionate” costs exceeding £150,000—an amount that may surpass the property’s equity.
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