A Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos state, has adjourned till Wednesday, February 26, 2025, to rule on whether or not to continue to hear the case of the former Governor of the Central Bank, Godwin Emefiele.
Justice Rahman Oshodi adjourned for ruling after Emefiele’s Counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Olalekan Ojo, asked the judge to recuse himself from the trial, citing bias.
As reported by Channels TV, another Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Kazeem Gbadamosi representing Emefiele’s co-defendant, Henry Omoile also made a similar request.
Emefiele, who is facing multiple charges related to financial misconduct during his tenure at the helm of the CBN, has continued to deny all allegations against him.
His co-defendant, Omoile, is facing a three-count charge bordering on unlawful acceptance of gifts by agents.
How Emefiele’s PA received $400,000 on his behalf
At the proceedings on Monday, February 24, the EFCC Lead Counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Rotimi Oyedepo, concluded the evidence-in-chief of a former personal assistant to the CBN governor, Adetola John.
Recall that in the ongoing trial of Godwin Emefiele, his former personal assistant, John Adetola, revealed that he collected $400,000 on behalf of the ex-governor.
Adetola explained that in 2018, he was instructed by Eric Odoh, the personal assistant to Emefiele in Abuja, to collect $400,000 from John Ayoh, the former director of the ICT department, and deliver it to Emefiele.
Adetola’s revelation has led to a fresh twist to the legal battle between former CBN governor Godwin Emefiele, the federal government and the EFCC.
Court adjourns Emefiele’s trial over alleged bias
After reminding the witness of this testimony, Oyedepo asked the witness to confirm a WhatsApp message from Eric Odoh which was printed from his phone by the EFCC investigators.
The defence team objected to this line of questioning on the grounds that the document was solely meant for identification and was not an exhibit before the court. They also argued that the witness could not read or speak into the document.
Justice Oshodi overruled the defence team and allowed the witness to read from the document marked for identification.
In his response, the EFCC counsel, Oyedepo opposed their applications.
After this procedure, the lead defence counsel, Ojo, expressed dissatisfaction with the court’s decision. Rather than commence their cross-examination of the witness, through oral applications, they unanimously asked the court to recuse itself on the allegation of bias.
Justice Oshodi adjourned till February 25 to rule on the submissions.
Court orders forfeiture of assets linked to Emefiele
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that High Court in Lagos granted the final forfeiture of $4.7 million, N830 million, and multiple properties linked to Godwin Emefiele.
In his ruling, Justice Yellim Bogoro held that the funds and properties were proceeds of unlawful activities and must be forfeited to the Nigerian government.
The EFCC secured the forfeiture after the respondents failed to prove the legitimacy of the assets.
