Emefiele’s extra-judicial statements have been admitted as evidence by an Ikeja Special Offences Court in his alleged $4.5 billion fraud trial, with the case adjourned until October 6 for continuation.
An Ikeja Special Offences Court has admitted into evidence extra-judicial statements made by former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in his ongoing trial over allegations of abuse of office and corruption.
Justice Rahman Oshodi delivered the ruling on Thursday, admitting the statements as Exhibit K31 and allowing the substantive trial to proceed.
Following the ruling, the court adjourned the matter until October 6, 2026, for continuation of the trial.
Emefiele is facing a 19-count charge bordering on alleged gratification, corrupt demands and abuse of office involving transactions valued at 4.5 billion dollars and N2.8 billion.
His co-defendant, Henry Omoile, is also standing trial on a three-count charge of alleged unlawful acceptance of gifts.
The court had earlier reserved July 9 to determine the admissibility of the former CBN governor’s statements after his counsel, Mr Olalekan Ojo (SAN), challenged their validity.
The defence argued that the statements were not made voluntarily, alleging they were obtained through physical and psychological oppression during Emefiele’s detention.
Ojo told the court that his client was detained by the Department of State Services (DSS) for more than 157 days, relying on the provisions of the Anti-Torture Act, 2017, and relevant sections of the Evidence Act.
According to the senior advocate, the central issue before the court was whether the statements attributed to Emefiele were made voluntarily.
He argued that video recordings of the interrogation process would have provided the most reliable evidence of compliance with due process and contended that the absence of such recordings rendered the statements unreliable and inadmissible.
Ojo also questioned the role of the legal practitioner who witnessed the interviews and urged the court to reject the statements.
The prosecution, however, opposed the application.
The Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), called an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigator, Mr Alvan Gurumnaan, to testify during the trial-within-trial.
The witness told the court that Emefiele honoured the EFCC’s invitation for questioning in the presence of his lawyer and that the interviews were conducted with his legal representative in attendance.
Oyedepo argued that there was no legal basis to exclude the statements, maintaining that they did not constitute confessional statements.
He submitted that there was nothing contained in the statements that amounted to an admission of guilt.
Justice Oshodi subsequently ruled in favour of the prosecution and admitted the statements into evidence, paving the way for the continuation of the substantive trial.
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