Former Godwin Emefiele has pushed back against efforts by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to submit statements allegedly made by him as evidence in his ongoing trial over allegations of $4.5 billion and ₦2.8 billion fraud and abuse of office.
The former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, through his lawyer Olalekan Ojo (SAN), told the Lagos State Special Offences Court that the statements were obtained under unacceptable conditions while he was in EFCC custody.
Appearing before Justice Rahman Oshodi in Ikeja, the defence argued that Emefiele was allegedly detained for over 157 days in isolation, claiming the prolonged detention was used to pressure him into making statements against his will.
His legal team insisted that under Nigeria’s Anti-Torture Act, any statement secured through coercion, intimidation or inhumane treatment cannot be accepted as valid evidence in court.
The disagreement started after federal prosecutor Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) attempted to tender several statements through prosecution witness Alvan Ikoku, who testified that EFCC investigators questioned Emefiele on multiple occasions in October 2023.
Immediately after the witness testimony, the defence asked the court to open a trial-within-trial to determine whether the statements were voluntarily made before they could be accepted in the main case.
During proceedings, the prosecution agreed to withdraw one statement dated October 26, 2023, explaining that the document contained only Emefiele’s identification details, leading the court to strike it out.
However, prosecutors strongly opposed conducting a separate hearing on the remaining documents, arguing that the statements were not confessional and therefore did not require additional proceedings.
The EFCC further argued that the Evidence Act remains the main legal authority guiding admissibility of documents and should take priority over procedural objections raised by the defence.
Emefiele’s lawyers, however, insisted the issue of voluntariness must first be resolved before any disputed statements can be admitted into evidence.
After hearing both sides, Justice Oshodi postponed ruling on the matter until July 9, while fixing October 6 to October 9 for continuation of the substantive fraud trial.