EFCC Witness Tells Court Suspects Admitted Withdrawing $6.2m From CBN In Emefiele Trial

EFCC Witness Tells Court Suspects Admitted Withdrawing $6.2m From CBN In Emefiele Trial

EFCC witness tells court suspects admitted withdrawing $6.23m from CBN in ongoing trial of ex-CBN governor Emefiele.

A witness of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the ongoing trial of a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, Tuesday’s told the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) that some suspects confessed to fraudulently withdrawing the sum of $6.23 million from the apex bank.

Among the allegations the anti-graft agency leveled against the former CBN boss in the 20-count amended charge was that he conspired with some other persons to move from the apex bank the sum of $6,230,000, purportedly meant for international election observers for the 2023 general election.

In the charge marked: FCT/HC/CR/577/2023, he was also accused of criminal breach of trust, forgery, abuse of office, as well as conferring corrupt advantages on two companies, April 1616 Nigeria Ltd and Architekon Nigeria Ltd, while in office.

He had, however, denied committing the alleged offences and has since been admitted to bail.

In his bid to prove the allegations, the EFCC has called 13 witnesses since the trial began nearly three years ago, with the 14th Prosecution Witness (PW14) testifying at Tuesday’s proceedings.

The PW14, the Commissioner of Police in Charge of Special Fraud Unit, Lagos, Eloho Edwin Okpoziakpo, narrated before Justice Muazu, how he and three other police officers were deployed to assist Mr. Jim Obaze, who was appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a Special Investigator, to investigate the CBN and other government business entities.

The CP claimed that he assisted the Special Investigator in taking statements, interrogating persons who were complicit one way or the other, and also provided intelligence to aid the special investigator’s work.

Led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, the witness disclosed that in the course of their investigation, they got an intelligence on $6.23 million that was fraudulently taken from the Abuja branch of the CBN with the defendant’s approval, adding that, they investigated the intelligence and interrogated Emefiele.

“Investigation revealed that the money was fraudulently taken because some of the suspects, including Maishanu, who we investigated, confessed.

“The Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation denied ever requesting money for election observers, which was the claim that the money was meant for. We wrote to the then Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and they responded,” Okpoziakpo told the court.

According to him, the money was withdrawn using some documents, including a letter forwarding purported approval of the then President, late Muhammadu Buhari, for the $6.23million to be paid.

Asked to identify some exhibits already tendered by the prosecution and admitted as exhibited by the court, the PW14 said Exhibit PD6 was a document asking for the release of the $6.23 million directed to Emefiele, while Exhibit PD7 was the purported document giving the approval of the then President Buhari for the money, dated January 24, 2023.

The prosecution witness further told the court that the request to release the $6.23 million was honoured, “it was treated and the money was paid.”

While further identifying the exhibits before the court, Okpoziakpo told the court that he personally recovered Exhibit PD1 – PD5 from the Abuja branch of CBN where the money was cashed.

According to him, PD1 gave details of the amount of money that was paid out in $100 bale on February 8, 2023, while PD2 was a memo from the CBN’s Director of Banking Services Department to the Abuja Branch Controller of the apex bank, giving approval to the branch controller to pay the sum of $6.23million.

Meanwhile, Justice Muazu has adjourned the case to July 2 for continuation of the hearing.

Another witness of the EFCC, Bashirudeen Maishanu, had earlier in January this year admitted being responsible for the theft of $6.2 million from the CBN, part of which Emefiele is currently standing trial.

Maishanu, who is a Deputy Director, Banking Supervision with the CBN, had admitted his complicity in the movement of the funds from the Garki branch of the CBN, when he testified before the court.

He had also admitted receiving alongside some of his friends, the sum of $2.5 million as “gift” for facilitating the release of the $6.2 million.

Besides, Maishanu, who had admitted being responsible for part of the crime for which the government is seeking punishment for Emefiele, had, in his evidence, told the court that Emefiele did not benefit from the $6.2 million fraud, nor gave his approval for the withdrawal.

“I admitted to the special investigative panel appointed by President Bola Tinubu to investigate CBN activities under the defendant, and I am answerable for the money being lost.

“I took that responsibility for the loss because I was inadvertently involved in the withdrawal and the Personal Assistant (PA) to Emefiele, Mr Eric Ocheme, was nowhere to be found,” he had said.

He had told the court that he did not know that the withdrawal was a fraud until he was confronted with a document to show that the signatures of the then President Muhammad Buhari, the then Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha were forged.

“The disappearance of the $6.2 million rests on me. I accept personal responsibility for a number of reasons.

“First, I was inadvertently involved. Second, Mr. Eric (Emefiele’s PA) is nowhere to be found. I have tried severally to reach him and even through friends very close to him. I did not know it was a fraud,” he said.

He had added that he neither met Emefiele nor gave him any money as far as the $6.2 million transaction was concerned, adding that, “I did not receive any instruction from him; all instructions I received were from Eric Ocheme.”

He further told the court that he did not see Emefiele’s approval before the money was withdrawn until he met with the special investigator.

Maishanu, who had claimed that he was sanctioned by CBN for the money, stated that the $6.2 million was never used for the purpose it was meant for.