- In $4.5bn, N2.8bn alleged fraud trial
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Thursday, told an Ikeja Special Offences Court that the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, acquired multi-billion-naira properties through proxies while in office.
The commission made this known through an investigator, Alvan Gurumnaan, who testified before the court.
It would be recalled that Emefiele is answering to a 19-count charge of alleged gratification, corrupt demands and abuse of office involving transactions valued at $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion.
Henry Omoile, his co-defendant, is standing trial on three counts of unlawful acceptance of gifts.
In his testimony before the court, presided over by Justice Rahman Oshodi, the witness, who was led in evidence by the counsel for the anti-graft agency and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Rotimi Oyedepo, confirmed that Emefiele’s statement was recorded by the special operations team he led.
Gurumnaan maintained that investigations revealed that Emefiele used his office as CBN governor to create a system that denied ordinary Nigerians and businesses in dire need of foreign exchange access to funds, forcing them to accept special arrangements he allegedly orchestrated.
The witness said: “One of those examples was how a company had to pay millions of dollars to the first defendant through his staff, Monday Osazuwa.
“Osazuwa admitted to us in the course of investigation that he received about $17 million from the company and gave it to the second defendant. The second defendant was the one who later took the money to the first defendant.”
Gurumnaan told Justice Oshodi that the former CBN boss used associates to procure numerous properties beyond what his legitimate income could justify. He added that several courts had already ordered the forfeiture of assets estimated to be worth hundreds of billions of naira.
Among the assets recovered, the witness said, were $2 million in cash recovered from the office of a lawyer, Ifeanyin Omeke, who allegedly admitted to acting as a front for Emefiele and serving as secretary to several of his companies; twin duplexes in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos; two mansions on Queens Drive, Ikoyi, Lagos; a factory in Agbor, Delta State, Emefiele’s hometown, which had already been forfeited to the Federal Government; a block of eight flats on Adekunle Lawal Street, Ikoyi, formerly owned by the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company, where Emefiele served as board chairman, which he allegedly sold to himself and which has since been forfeited; a warehouse in Ogun State containing containers worth hundreds of billions of naira; an 11-storey building under construction comprising about 94 luxury flats; and an estate of about 750 houses in the Lokogoma district of Abuja.
The witness added that “he accepted and came to court that the properties belong to him”, maintaining that although Emefiele was allowed to respond to the findings while his statement was being recorded, he did not address the allegations.
However, Emefiele’s counsel, Olalekan Ojo (SAN), and counsel to Omoile, Kazeem Gbadamosi, objected to the testimony, arguing that it was not relevant to the charges before the court.
In his decision, Justice Oshodi overruled the objection, holding that the defendants were at liberty to cross-examine the witness.
Justice Oshodi adjourned the case to November 13, 2026, for continuation of the trial.