Supreme Court affirms final forfeiture of Emefiele’s properties, $2.045m to FG

By Imisioluwa Afunmiso

The Supreme Court on Friday upheld 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 apex court overturned the decision of the Court of Appeal and restored the judgment of the Federal High Court, Lagos, which had ordered the forfeiture of the assets after finding that they were reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.

The ruling followed an appeal by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which challenged the appellate court’s decision reversing the forfeiture order granted by the Federal High Court on November 1, 2024.

The trial court had granted the Commission’s application for final forfeiture after holding that the assets were liable to forfeiture under the law, having been reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.

Emefiele, however, successfully appealed the decision, prompting the EFCC to approach the Supreme Court for a final determination.

In allowing the Commission’s appeal, the apex court reinstated the judgment of the Federal High Court, effectively affirming that the assets be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.

The assets include a fully detached duplex on Hakeem Odumosu Street, Lekki Phase 1; an undeveloped parcel of land and a bungalow on Oyinkan Abayomi Drive, Ikoyi; 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.

Also forfeited are $2.045 million and share certificates belonging to Queensdorf Global Fund Limited.

The forfeiture proceedings were initiated by the EFCC under 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).

The Commission’s application, brought as an action in rem, was supported by an affidavit deposed to by one of its investigating officers, David Jayeoba, who stated that investigations revealed that the properties, funds and share certificates were reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.

The Supreme Court’s verdict brings the litigation over the assets to a close, with the Federal Government retaining ownership of the forfeited properties, funds and share certificates in line with the judgment of the Federal High Court.