The Supreme Court of Nigeria has affirmed the final forfeiture of ₦1.582 billion linked to former National Coordinating Consultant of the Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), Steve Ogidan, to the Federal Government.
The judgment, delivered by a five-member panel led by Justice Habeeb Adewale Abiru on Friday, June 19, 2026, upheld the earlier decisions of both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal, ruling that the forfeiture was lawful and in accordance with existing legal provisions.
The apex court dismissed Ogidan’s appeal, describing it as lacking merit, and ordered him to pay the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) ₦5 million as the cost of the action.
Justice Abiru further noted that Ogidan and other parties involved had previously returned the disputed funds through an out-of-court settlement, a development the court said further validated the trial court’s decision to grant the final forfeiture order.
According to the EFCC, investigations revealed reasonable grounds to suspect that the funds were proceeds of unlawful activities, including alleged bribery received from consultants whom Ogidan was responsible for supervising under NIRSAL.
Based on its findings, the anti-graft agency approached the Federal High Court in Abuja, where Justice I.E. Ekwo granted an interim forfeiture order on February 5, 2024, followed by a final forfeiture order.
Ogidan challenged the decision at the Court of Appeal, arguing that the trial court wrongly relied on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act in ordering the forfeiture. However, the appellate court dismissed the appeal in June 2025, prompting him to approach the Supreme Court.
The EFCC disclosed that between December 2015 and June 2021, eight companies linked to Ogidan—including Successory Nigeria Limited, Beresh Consulting Limited, Blue Accord Nigeria Limited, Global Knowledge Consulting Limited, Freshvine Agribiz Limited, Richtigen Limited, O Stevens Consulting, Proteus, and Enterprise Aesthetics—received a cumulative ₦9.59 billion from NIRSAL.
The Supreme Court’s ruling brings the legal battle over the ₦1.582 billion forfeiture to a close, marking another significant victory for the EFCC in its anti-corruption efforts.
