The Federal High Court in Lagos has ruled for the final forfeiture of substantial assets owned by former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele. This includes a cash amount of $2.045 million and eight valuable properties situated in Lagos and Delta states, which are to be handed over to the Nigerian government.
Delivering the judgment on Friday, Justice Deinde Dipeolu stated that the assets, including two share certificates from a company, are suspected to have been obtained through illicit activities.
In October, SaharaReporters reported that a dispatch rider, Mr. Monday Osazuwa, the first prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Emefiele, revealed in court that he had no record of the funds he collected for Emefiele.
During cross-examination by Emefieleâs lawyer, Mr. Olalekan Ojo (SAN), Osazuwa testified at a Lagos Special Offences Court in Ikeja that he was instructed by Emefiele not to document any financial transactions.
Emefiele faces serious charges of abuse of office and money laundering, amounting to $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Emefiele and Henry Omoile on April 8, 2024, on 23 counts related to various forms of corruption, including receiving bribes and illegally obtaining property.
During the trial on Monday, Osazuwa, who was recalled for cross-examination, testified before Justice Rahman Oshodi that Emefiele had explicitly ordered him not to maintain any records of the cash he received.
Earlier, on April 12, 2024, Osazuwa had informed the court that Emefiele had repeatedly instructed him to collect significant cash sums. He stated, âThe highest amount I collected was $1 million in cash, and later, I received $850,000, $750,000, and $400,000 in separate tranches. I didnât keep records because Emefiele told me to just deliver the money to his house.â
Osazuwa clarified that he had been a dispatch rider with Zenith Bank since 2001 and joined the CBN as a contract staff member in 2014, where Emefiele was his supervisor. He eventually became a senior supervisor responsible for recording and filing official documents in the governor’s office in Lagos.
Under questioning from Ojo, Osazuwa admitted he had not documented any of Emefiele’s instructions regarding record-keeping in his three statements to the EFCC. He further stated there were no documents proving that Emefiele or Omoile acknowledged receipt of any funds.
When asked about the importance of maintaining financial records, Osazuwa acknowledged that it was essential for accountability and future reference, but he insisted he did not keep any records. âI didnât produce any record; I followed his instructions regarding the money collected for him,â he said.
The witness reviewed his three statements made to the EFCC in February 2024, but reiterated that he did not document Emefiele’s instruction to forgo record-keeping. Osazuwa also disclosed that he had been held in EFCC custody for a week before being granted bail. He confirmed that no witnesses were present when he handed over money to Emefiele.
During cross-examination by the second defense counsel, Adeyinka Kotoye (SAN), Osazuwa was asked to clarify whether he had mentioned counting the money with Omoile, to which he replied no.
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