A Federal High Court in Abuja has moved to strip former Petroleum Minister Timipre Sylva of nine high-value properties across the capital, granting the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission an interim forfeiture order on assets suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity, as Sylva himself remains abroad and, by all accounts, shows no sign of returning.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu made the order following an ex-parte motion filed by EFCC counsel Oluwaleke Atolagbe, under suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/607/2026, invoking provisions of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006. Though the ruling was delivered on April 24, the enrolled order only became visible this week — a detail that itself reflects the quiet, procedural manner in which this case has advanced.
The Properties: A Portfolio Across Abuja’s Most Exclusive Addresses
The assets under interim forfeiture span some of Abuja’s most sought-after districts, painting a picture of considerable accumulated wealth now frozen at the edge of permanent state seizure.
They include four blocks of terraces at Dakibiyu; a duplex with penthouse and office complex on Niger Street; a standalone duplex at Palm Springs Estate in Mpape; and a ten-unit block of flats on Sefadu Street in Wuse Zone 4. The list continues with a six-unit block on Mubi Close in Garki; two blocks comprising 12 units on Thaba Tseka Crescent in Wuse II; and a standalone duplex on Nile Lake in Maitama, one of Abuja’s most prestigious residential corridors.
The ninth property carries a particular institutional dimension: a two-block building currently occupied by the National Information Technology Development Agency, located on Aguta Street in Garki. That a sitting federal agency operates from a property now subject to criminal forfeiture proceedings adds a layer of complexity the court will eventually need to resolve.
The 14-Day Window
Justice Egwuatu’s order does not finalise the forfeiture, it initiates it. The court directed that the interim order be published in at least two of the following national newspapers: ThisDay, Guardian, Punch, Vanguard, Tribune, and Independent, with publication to occur within seven days of the EFCC receiving the certified true copy of the order.
That publication triggers a 14-day window during which any party with an interest in the properties may appear before the court to show cause why a final forfeiture order should not be made in favour of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The matter has been adjourned to May 25 for a compliance report. If no credible claim emerges within that window, the path to permanent forfeiture becomes considerably shorter.
The Fugitive at the Centre
What transforms this from a routine asset recovery proceeding into something far more consequential is who Timipre Sylva is, and where he is.
The former Governor of Bayelsa State and Minister of State for Petroleum Resources under the late President Muhammadu Buhari was named as a conspirator in seven of 13 counts in the federal government’s coup plot case, filed last month against six defendants currently on trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja. Sylva is not among the defendants, prosecutors say he is on the run.
His alleged role is that of financier. The charge sheet positions him as a key backer of the alleged plot against President Tinubu, though he has not been formally charged and maintains his innocence. When security operatives raided his Abuja residence in October last year, Sylva issued a statement from abroad, saying he and his wife were in the United Kingdom for routine medical checks and planned to proceed to Malaysia for a professional conference. He denied any involvement in the coup allegation.
He has not returned to Nigeria since.
Five of his domestic workers and aides remain in detention. Several serving military officers face trial before a General Court Martial in connection with the same alleged plot. Yet the man prosecutors describe as a major financier remains beyond the reach of Nigerian authorities, his whereabouts unconfirmed, his silence unbroken.
The Coup Case: What Is Known
The federal government formally arraigned six defendants on April 22 in connection with the alleged plot. They are Mohammed Ibrahim Gana, a retired major-general; Erasmus Ochegobia Victor, a retired navy captain; Ahmed Ibrahim, a police inspector; Zekeri Umoru, an electrician at the Presidential Villa; Bukar Kashim Goni; and Abdulkadir Sani, a Zaria-based Islamic cleric.
Together, they face 13 counts spanning treason, terrorism, failure to disclose information, and money laundering. All six pleaded not guilty. Justice Abdulmalik, presiding over that case, granted accelerated hearing, fixed April 27 for the bail hearing, and ordered that the defendants be remanded in SSS custody.
Separately, 36 serving military officers were arraigned before a General Court Martial at the Guards Brigade Scorpion Mess in Asokoro, a parallel military justice process unfolding alongside the civilian proceedings.
A Pattern of Restricted Access
The coup trial has also raised concerns beyond the courtroom drama itself. Journalists covering proceedings in Justice Abdulmalik’s court have reported being ejected from the chamber on multiple occasions, sometimes citing space constraints, sometimes with no explanation given, even after reporters identified themselves as press.
The Federal High Court in Abuja maintains 13 courtrooms handling both criminal and civil matters. Access policies, reporters say, vary significantly from one courtroom to another, an inconsistency that, in a case of this national significance, raises legitimate questions about transparency and the public’s right to observe justice being administered.
The Larger Picture
The interim forfeiture of Sylva’s properties is a procedural step, not a verdict. Nigerian courts have granted such orders before, only for assets to be returned when claims succeed or cases collapse. The EFCC’s record in high-profile asset recovery is mixed.
But the convergence of a coup conspiracy allegation, a fugitive former minister, nine premium Abuja properties under state custody, and a 14-day public notice window creates a legal and political moment with few recent precedents. Whether Sylva eventually returns to contest the forfeiture — or allows the properties to pass to the federal government in silence — may itself become the most telling statement he makes.
For now, the clock is running. The newspapers will carry the order. And a court in Abuja will wait to see who, if anyone, shows up to answer for the properties of a man who has not.
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