EFCC Defiles Court Order, Fails To Bring Emefiele To Court

Justice Olukayode Adeniyi of a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, on Monday, reiterated his order directing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to release, with immediate effect, the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele.

VerseNews reports that Justice Adeniyi reiterated the order following the failure of the commission to comply with his order issued on November 2, 2023.

The court had last week ordered the anti-graft agency to release Emefiele unconditionally or produce him in court to be admitted to bail.

But the commission did not release nor produce the former CBN boss at the resumed hearing on Monday.

Lawyer to the EFCC, Farouk Abdallah, attempting to explain why the order of the court was yet to be complied with, cited the absence of certain exhibit in the affidavit Emefiele deposed to in support of his motion on notice.

But the trial judge, upon confirming that the anti-graft agency received his order directing it to release Emefiele unconditionally or produce him in court so that he can be admitted to bail, held that his order must be complied with before the court can proceed any further.

Justice Adeniyi meanwhile directed Emefiele’s counsel, Mathew Burkaa (SAN), to ensure the service of the exhibits on the respondents and adjourned till Wednesday November 8, to comply with his order.

He had issued the order last week after listening to the submissions in the exparte application marked: M/122/2023 in a motion on notice with the number FCT/HC/CV/040/2023 filed by Emefiele, who is challenging his continued detention by the Federal Government since June 10.

He was arrested shortly after his suspension from office by President Bola Tinubu and has been in custody since then, despite a court order.

The Department of State Services (DSS), which refused to obey a similar order by the FCT High Court, subsequently arraigned him before the Federal High Court in Lagos, on alleged illegal possession of firearms and again before a High Court of the FCT, where he and two others, Sa’adatu Ramallan Yaro and a company, April1616 Investment Limited, were to be arraigned on a 20-count charge bordering on procurement fraud to the tune of N6.9 billion.

The arraignment was stalled due to the absence of Yaro, who was said to be sick and the matter has been adjourned a few times.

However, following what was suspected to be efforts at out-of-court settlement, the arraignment has been stalled until his recent transfer last week from the custody of the DSS to EFCC.

The continued detention prompted the instant suit and application for release before Justice Adeniyi.

According to Burkaa, Monday, November 6, made it day 149 since Emefiele has been in custody.