By Our Correspondent

National News – A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the interim forfeiture of nine properties allegedly linked to former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, pending further legal proceedings.

The order was granted by Justice Obiora Egwuatu following an ex parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on allegations that the assets were proceeds of unlawful activities.

The ruling, delivered on April 24 but made public on May 6, directed that the properties be temporarily handed over to the Federal Government.

The anti-graft agency, through its counsel Oluwaleke Atolagbe, requested the court to approve the interim forfeiture while awaiting a final hearing on the matter.

The affected properties are located in high-value districts across Abuja.

They include terraces in Dakibiyu, duplexes in Maitama and Mpape, blocks of flats in Wuse Zone 4 and Garki, and a two-block building in Garki reportedly occupied by the National Information Technology Development Agency.

Justice Egwuatu also ordered the EFCC to publish the forfeiture notice in at least two national newspapers within seven days.

The publication is expected to invite any interested party to appear before the court within 14 days to explain why the assets should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.

The case, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/607/2026, was filed under the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.

According to the EFCC, investigations linked the properties to suspected unlawful financial activities.

Sylva, a former governor of Bayelsa State, has also recently been mentioned in connection with an alleged failed coup plot against President Bola Tinubu, although no formal charges have been filed against him in that matter.

The court adjourned the case until May 25 for a compliance report and possible further proceedings on the final forfeiture application.