A prosecution witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Thursday told an Abuja High Court that former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, did not benefit from the alleged $6.2 million fraud involving the apex bank.
The witness, CP Okpoziakpo Eloho, who is the 14th prosecution witness, made the disclosure during cross-examination by Emefiele’s counsel, Matthew Burkaa (SAN).
Emefiele is facing charges bordering on criminal breach of trust, forgery, abuse of office, conspiracy to obtain by false pretence and obtaining money by false pretence while serving as CBN governor.
The EFCC also accused him of conferring corrupt advantages on two firms, April 1616 Nigeria Ltd and Architekon Nigeria Ltd. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
At the resumed hearing, Eloho, who led the police investigation into the case, told the court that Emefiele denied authorising or approving the release of the $6.2 million to anyone.
He also said the former CBN governor denied receiving any correspondence from the then Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, or acting on any such letter.
During cross-examination, the witness confirmed that one Jibril Abubakar appeared before the investigative panel and admitted collecting the $6.2 million from the Abuja branch of the CBN.
According to Eloho, none of the individuals interviewed during the investigation stated that Emefiele benefited from the money in any way.
He further testified that although Abubakar claimed to be a staff member in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, investigations later established that he was never employed there.
The witness added that he was unaware whether Abubakar had been prosecuted despite his confession to collecting the funds.
Eloho also told the court that another CBN staff member, Bashirudeen Maishanu, was questioned during the investigation and confessed to stealing the money.
When presented with documents relating to the processing, approval and release of the funds, the witness acknowledged that the established protocol for processing such transactions had been breached.
He explained that under the CBN’s administrative structure, official correspondence from the governor should ordinarily pass through the deputy governor before reaching other officials.
The witness recalled taking Emefiele’s statement at the Kuje Correctional Centre on December 13, 2023, in relation to the disputed funds.
Speaking on the statement made by former SGF Boss Mustapha, Eloho said the special investigator, Jim Obaze, recorded it while he was present, adding that Mustapha maintained his signature on the relevant document had been forged.
On whether a forensic examination was conducted on Emefiele’s signature, the witness said it would have been appropriate to subject it to the same forensic analysis carried out on Mustapha’s signature.
During re-examination, Burkaa objected when EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) sought to introduce exhibits unrelated to the alleged $6.2 million fraud.
The defence argued that Section 215(3) of the Evidence Act prohibited such questioning, insisting that the witness was testifying specifically on the alleged fraud and not the broader case.
In a brief ruling, Justice Hamza Muazu held that there was no ambiguity in the evidence already given by the witness and declined to allow further questioning that would amount to continuing the investigation in open court.
The judge subsequently adjourned the case until Friday for the continuation of hearing.
