The Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja has admitted fresh documentary evidence in the ongoing trial of former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, who is facing allegations of multi-billion-dollar fraud.
Justice Rahman Oshodi, who presided over Thursday’s proceedings, overruled objections by the defence and marked the tendered materials as Exhibit G.
Emefiele is being tried alongside his associate, Henry Omoile, on a 19-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust, forgery, and money laundering brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
During the resumed hearing, EFCC’s lead counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), continued his examination of a prosecution witness, Alvan Gurumnaan — an operative of the commission — who narrated findings from the anti-graft agency’s investigation.
Gurumnaan told the court that WhatsApp chats retrieved from Exhibit G showed that Omoile had instructed one John Adetola to deliver $400,000 to “Oga,” referring to Emefiele.
“Adetola confirmed that he met with John Ikechukwu Ayoh, who was then the CBN Governor’s personal assistant, in Lekki, where he handed over the money,” the witness said. “He later said he went to the CBN office in Lagos and delivered the $400,000 directly to Mr. Emefiele.”
According to the witness, Ayoh later admitted collecting and delivering the money to Emefiele, as well as receiving another $200,000 for the same purpose.
Gurumnaan added that a CBN contractor, Victor Oyedua, also confirmed making the two payments — $400,000 and $200,000 — through Ayoh to facilitate contract payments.
Additional Evidence Tendered
The prosecution further tendered more documents obtained from the CBN, including a company letter to the EFCC dated February 24, 2024, which Oyedepo described as a public record and primary evidence.
However, defence counsels Olalekan Ojo (SAN) and Kazeem Gbadamosi (SAN) objected, arguing that the photocopied materials had not been properly certified. Justice Oshodi dismissed the objection and admitted the materials as Exhibit H.
Also admitted was a Xiaomi MI10T mobile phone recovered during the EFCC investigation, which the prosecution said contained the WhatsApp messages forming part of the evidence. The phone was marked as Exhibit I.
When Oyedepo moved to tender statements allegedly made by Emefiele during interrogation, the defence again objected, claiming they were obtained under duress.
Justice Oshodi ruled that the court would conduct a “trial within trial” to determine whether the defendant’s statements were made voluntarily.
“The court hereby orders a trial within trial regarding the defendant’s statements,” the judge ruled. “The parties shall return on November 21, 2025, for the forensic inspection report.”
The matter was thereafter adjourned to December 2, 2025, for continuation of the trial within trial.
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