A businessman has secured legal ownership of two lots of land in Sangre Grande after the Court of Appeal overturned a High Court ruling that had previously ordered him to vacate the property.

In a judgment on May 20, Justices of Appeal Mira Dean-Armorer, Malcolm Holdip and Carla Brown-Antoine ruled that Keith Quamina and his company, Woods Enterprise Holdings Ltd, had established adverse possession of the land over a period exceeding 16 years, entitling them to ownership.

The disputed land, located at LP 919 Eastern Main Road, was at the centre of a long-standing legal battle with Norbert Hernandez, who purchased the property in 2003 from Monte Cristo Estates Ltd. Hernandez claimed Quamina had unlawfully occupied the land, despite requests and police interventions to remove him.