The Supreme Court, on Friday, affirmed the final forfeiture of seven landed properties, $2.045 million and share certificates linked to former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, to the Federal Government.

In a unanimous judgment delivered by a five-member panel led by Justice Ibrahim Mohammed Saulawa, the Supreme Court set aside the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal and restored the judgment of the Federal High Court, Lagos, which had ordered the final forfeiture of the assets.

The Supreme Court held that the assets were reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities, thereby upholding the Federal High Court’s decision.

Emefiele had challenged the Federal High Court’s forfeiture order before the Court of Appeal, which overturned the ruling. Dissatisfied with that judgment, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) appealed to the Supreme Court, which has now reinstated the trial court’s decision.

The assets forfeited to the Federal Government include a fully detached duplex at Hakeem Odumosu Street, Lekki Phase 1; an undeveloped parcel of land on Oyinkan Abayomi Drive, Ikoyi; a bungalow on Oyinkan Abayomi Drive; a four-bedroom duplex on Probyn Road, Ikoyi; an industrial complex under construction on 22 plots of land in Agbor, Delta State; eight units of apartments on Adekunle Lawal Road, Ikoyi; and a duplex on Bank Road, Ikoyi.

The Supreme Court also affirmed the forfeiture of $2,045,000 and the share certificates of Queensdorf Global Fund Limited.

The final forfeiture order was initially granted on November 1, 2024, by Justice D.I. Dipeolu of the Federal High Court in Lagos in Suit No. FHC/L/MISC/500/24 following an application filed by the EFCC.

The anti-graft agency had relied on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006, and Section 44(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), arguing that investigations established that the properties and funds were reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.

The application, supported by an affidavit sworn to by EFCC investigating officer, David Jayeoba, sought a final forfeiture order against the assets through an action in rem.

With Friday’s unanimous verdict, the Supreme Court has conclusively upheld the forfeiture of the seven properties, $2.045 million and the share certificates to the Federal Government, bringing the legal dispute over the assets to a close.