The Federal High Court in Lagos State has ruled for the final forfeiture of significant assets belonging to former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele, directing that a cash sum of $2.045 million and eight prime properties located in Lagos and Delta states be surrendered to the Nigerian government.
In a judgment delivered on Friday, Justice Deinde Dipeolu stated that the assets, which also include two share certificates from a firm, are reasonably suspected to have been acquired through proceeds of criminal activity.
Record that in October, a dispatch rider, Mr Monday Osazuwa, who is the first prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of embattled former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele on Monday, told the court he kept no record of monies collected for Emefiele.
Osazuwa had disclosed this before a Lagos Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja when he was again cross-examined by Emefiele’s counsel, Mr Olalekan Ojo (SAN).
Emefiele is standing trial over alleged abuse of office and money laundering to the tune of $4.5bn and N2.8bn.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had, on April 8, 2024, arraigned Emefiele along with Henry Omoile on 23 counts bordering on abuse of office, accepting gratifications, corrupt demand, receiving property fraudulently obtained and conferring corrupt advantage.
However, at the resumed trial on Monday, Osazuwa, the first prosecution witness that was recalled for cross examination by the defence told Justice Rahman Oshodi that Emefiele instructed him not to keep any records of all the monies he collected for him.
It would be recalled that on April 12, 2024, when Osazuwa was led in Evidence-In-Chief by EFCC’s counsel, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), he had told court how Emefiele, on different occasions, instructed him to collect the sum of $3m cash in tranches.
“The highest amount I collected was $1m, all in cash, and some weeks later, the businessman also called me, and I collected $850,000, $750,000, and $400,000 cash in tranches.
“I did not keep records of transactions because the instructions he (Emefiele)gave me was that I should collect the money and bring it to his house.
“Whenever I receive the money and take it to my boss’s residence, Mr Emefiele will tell me to give it to the second defendant (Omoile) whenever he is not at home.”
The witness testified that he was a dispatch rider in Zenith Bank since 2001 before he joined CBN as a contract staff in 2014, noted that Emefiele was his boss while in Zenith Bank before he later joined him in CBN.
He also told the court that he was later appointed as a senior supervisor (full-time) in recording and filing documents while working in the governor’s office in Lagos.
“I perform as a senior supervisor, recording and filing with other official roles.”
However, Ojo asked Osazuwa if at any time he put in his three statements made at EFCC that he wrote that Emefiele instructed him not to keep records, he answered No. He said, there is no document produced showing where he recorded the monies he collected for Emefiele.
He also said that he didn’t have a document by either the first or second defendants acknowledging the receipt of money from him.
Asked if he knew the importance of keeping recordings of financial transactions, the witness said it was for record keeping and future reference, but he said he did not keep any records.
“I did not produce any record, I obeyed the instructions based on the money I collected for him,” he said.
The witness was shown his three extrajudicial statements he made on February 13,15, 23, 2024, before the EFCC to refresh his memory.
After going through the statement Osazuwa said, “I did not state it in my statement, but he instructed me not to record it. He instructed me that whenever he was not around I should just go straight and give it to the second defendant.”
He further told the court that he was detained in EFCC’s custody for a week and thereafter admitted to bail.
Osazuwa also told the court that there was no witness when he handed over the money to the first defendant (Emefiele).
On cross-examination by the second defence counsel, Adeyinka Kotoye (SAN) he asked the witness to clarify where he stated in his evidence that he and the second defendant counted the money in the envelope he collected for Emefiele. He said no.
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