Justice Rahman Oshodi of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, on Friday heard dramatic testimony alleging that operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) attempted to coerce a witness into implicating a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, in an alleged $4.5 billion fraud case.
The allegations were laid bare during the continuation of a trial-within-trial convened to determine the voluntariness and authenticity of a statement the EFCC claims was freely made by Mr Henry Omoile, the second defendant in the case.
Emefiele is the first defendant in the ongoing prosecution. He is standing trial on a 19-count charge bordering on receiving gratification and making corrupt demands, while Omoile faces a three-count charge relating to the unlawful acceptance of gifts by an agent.
Both defendants have pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
Testifying as a witness in the mini-trial and led in evidence by his counsel, Mr Adeyinka Kotoye, SAN, Omoile narrated in detail what he described as sustained pressure, threats, and intimidation by EFCC operatives during the process of taking his statements in February 2024.
According to the witness, he honoured an invitation by the EFCC and began writing his statement on February 26 and 27, 2024.
He said that during the exercise, an EFCC operative identified as Mr Azeez met with him, his private lawyer, Mr Nnamdi Offiah, and officials of the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS).
Omoile told the court that after a brief interaction, the NIBSS officials were asked to leave, leaving him alone with his lawyer and the EFCC officers.
He further testified that he was subsequently asked to see the team head, Mr Alvan, privately at his desk, in the absence of his counsel.
While recounting the encounter, Omoile said Alvan informed him that he had been invited to confirm certain information allegedly provided by one Monday Osazuwa, a CBN dispatch rider said to work with Emefiele.
He claimed that Alvan urged him to cooperate with the EFCC by supplying the required information, adding that he would be allowed to go home if he complied.
However, Omoile alleged that the EFCC team head also issued a stern warning, telling him that failure to cooperate would result in his detention and eventual arraignment alongside Emefiele.
He said he was then directed to return to Azeez, the investigating officer.
“Upon seeing Azeez, I was asked questions about my biography, which I answered directly into the EFCC statement sheet,” the witness told the court.
“After providing information on my biography, Azeez told me to stop writing on the EFCC sheet and gave me plain A4 sheets of paper to write answers to subsequent questions,” he added.
Omoile said he was presented with several selected questions, which he answered on the plain sheets.
According to him, Azeez later took the A4 papers to Alvan, who reviewed the questions and responses.
He alleged that Alvan found the answers unsatisfactory because they did not align with statements earlier attributed to Osazuwa and allegedly aimed at implicating Emefiele.
The witness further testified that Alvan cautioned him against standing in the way of the EFCC, warning that he would never be granted bail and would be charged with the former CBN governor if he failed to adjust his account.
He told the court that upon returning to the investigating officer, Azeez selectively picked some of the earlier questions and answers from the A4 sheets.
It was at this point, Omoile said that his lawyer objected to the procedure, only to be warned that further interference would result in his client remaining in EFCC custody.
Faced with what he described as mounting pressure, Omoile said he agreed to transcribe the selected questions and answers into the official EFCC statement sheets.
Despite this, he alleged that his release was still denied after Azeez sought Alvan’s approval.
Omoile told the court that he was subsequently taken to the EFCC detention facility, where he spent 24 days in custody without bail.
He further recounted that on February 27, 2024, as early as 9 a.m., Azeez arrived at the detention facility and took him back to the EFCC office on Awolowo Way, Ikeja, for further interrogation.
There, he said, he again encountered Alvan, who jokingly asked if he had enjoyed his time in the cell.
“I told Alvan I did not enjoy the cell. He then said that now that I had seen the cells, I should cooperate and not stand in the EFCC’s way, otherwise I would remain in detention until I was charged along with the first defendant,” Omolie testified.
According to the witness, he was again asked to conclude his statement writing, this time in the absence of his lawyer.
When he protested, Azeez allegedly told him to cooperate so that his bail could be processed.
Omoile said that while he was writing on plain A4 sheets, his lawyer later arrived and questioned why statements were being taken in his absence.
He claimed that Azeez reacted angrily and accused the lawyer of interfering with the investigation, a confrontation that escalated when another EFCC operative, identified as David, joined the fray and ordered Offiah out of the conference hall.
“At this stage, I felt threatened and continued writing the statements,” Omoile told the court, adding that other officers, including Ken and Idi Musa, intermittently questioned him on the responses he had written.
He alleged that all the A4 sheets were repeatedly shown to Alvan, who continued to threaten him with detention and prosecution.
Omoile also told the court that both he and his lawyer separately complained to Alvan about the treatment meted out to them, but their grievances were brushed aside with assurances that the issues would be resolved.
After listening to the testimony, Justice Oshodi adjourned further hearing in the trial-within-trial until February 6, to enable the court to continue determining whether the disputed statement was voluntarily made.
All rights reserved. The content on this website, including text and other digital materials, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed, in whole or in part, without the express written consent of The News Accelerator Network.
For advertising inquiries, news coverage, or press releases, please get in touch with us at
📧 thenewsacceleratornetwork@gmail.com
📞 08051017159, 08173970030
Kindly follow us on: https://www.facebook.com/thenewsaccelerator
You can also subscribe to our YouTube channels here: UCVELRC3WinKZ7tdmhmZaRmQhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/sub_confirmation=1
إرسال تعليق