The Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja on Thursday admitted additional documents as exhibits in the ongoing trial of former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, over alleged $4.5bn and N2.8bn fraud.
Justice Rahman Oshodi, who presided over the case, overruled the defence’s objections and admitted the documents into evidence.
“The court hereby overrules the objections of the defence counsel and admits the documents as Exhibit G,” Justice Oshodi ruled.
Emefiele is standing trial alongside his co-defendant, Henry Omoile, on 19 counts filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), bordering on alleged criminal breach of trust, forgery, and money laundering.
At Thursday’s proceedings, EFCC’s lead counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), continued the examination of Alvan Gurumnaan, an EFCC operative, who gave detailed testimony on the findings made during investigations.
Gurumnaan told the court that WhatsApp messages retrieved from Exhibit G showed conversations between Omoile and one John Adetola, where Omoile instructed Adetola to deliver $400,000 to “Oga” (Emefiele).
He said, “During our investigation, we sought clarification from Adetola. He explained that there was a conversation between him and Omoile regarding how to meet Ikechukwu Ayoh to collect $400,000 on behalf of Mr. Emefiele.”
According to the witness, Adetola confirmed that he went to Lekki, Lagos, where he met John Ikechukwu Ayoh, then a personal assistant to the CBN Governor, to deliver the money.
“He told us he proceeded to the CBN office in Lagos, where he handed the $400,000 to Mr. Emefiele,” Gurumnaan said.
The witness further stated that Ayoh, during interrogation, admitted receiving the money and delivering it to Emefiele.
“He also received another $200,000 from the same person, which he said he personally delivered to Emefiele in his office,” he added.
Gurumnaan told the court that a CBN contractor, Victor Oyedua, corroborated the claims, confirming he gave Ayoh the sums of $400,000 and $200,000 to deliver to the former CBN boss.
“He said he was handling two contracts at the CBN at the time, and when payment delayed, he was told to settle some management officials to facilitate it,” the EFCC operative testified.
Oyedepo later tendered additional documents obtained from the CBN, including a letter from a company to the EFCC dated February 24, 2024, describing it as a “public document and primary evidence” obtained during investigation.
However, defence counsel Olalekan Ojo (SAN) and Kazeem Gbadamosi (SAN) objected, arguing that the photocopies were not properly certified.
Justice Oshodi dismissed the objection and admitted the documents as Exhibit H.
The court also admitted a Xiaomi MI10T mobile phone recovered during investigation as Exhibit I, after the prosecution stated that WhatsApp messages retrieved from the device were analysed and presented in court.
Oyedepo further sought to tender statements allegedly made by Emefiele during interrogation, but the defence objected, claiming they were obtained under duress.
In a brief ruling, Justice Oshodi ordered a trial within trial to determine the voluntariness of the statements.
“The court hereby orders a trial within trial in respect of the defendant’s statements. The parties are to return on November 21, 2025, for the report on forensic inspection,” the judge ruled.
The case was adjourned until December 2, 2025, for continuation of the trial within trial.