“EFCC Alleges Forged Signatures of Buhari and Boss Mustapha in $6.2M CBN Fraud During Emefiele Trial”
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, maintained on Monday at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory that the signatures of the late President Muhammadu Buhari and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, were counterfeited by unscrupulous Nigerians to swindle the nation of $6,230,000.
EFCC Assistant Commander II, Mr. Chinedu Eneanya, informed the court that five officials from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) transferred the funds out of the apex institution under the pretense that it was intended for compensating foreign election observers in the 2023 general elections.
The anti-corruption agency gave evidence on Monday at the resumed trial of former CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, facing a 20-count accusation of criminal breach of trust brought against him by the federal government.
Emefiele is being prosecuted by the EFCC under the case marked FCT/HC/CR/577/2023.
He is on trial on an adjusted 20-count charge relating to criminal breach of trust, forgery, misuse of authority, conspiracy to obtain by deceptive means, and acquiring funds through false pretenses during his tenure as CBN governor.
Emefiele was, among others, accused of knowingly acquiring by deceptive means the amount of $6,230,000 allegedly destined for international election observers for the 2023 general election.
The EFCC alleged he conferred corrupt benefits upon two firms — April 1616 Nigeria Ltd and Architekon Nigeria Ltd.
He, however, pleaded not guilty to the accusations during his arraignment.
During Monday’s proceedings, Chinedu Eneanya, who participated in the investigative panel, was summoned to provide testimony as the 13th prosecution witness (PW13).
In his initial statement, the witness indicated to the court that his team was tasked with investigating the case.
“The inquiry disclosed that the sum of $6.2 million was withdrawn from the reserves of the CBN for a purported financial support of foreign observers for the 2023 elections.”
He recounted to the court that individuals connected to the transfer of the funds were questioned.
The witness stated that documents were retrieved from the CBN pertaining to the release of the funds.
Eneanya informed the court that investigations further revealed that the signatures of the then President, Muhammadu Buhari, and then Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, were forged to access the funds.
He noted that a forensic analysis was conducted, establishing that the two signatures were indeed counterfeited.
However, a dramatic moment unfolded during cross-examination by Mathew Burkaa, SAN, attorney for Emefiele, when the witness acknowledged that forensic analysis was not performed on Emefiele’s signature, despite Emefiele’s assertion that his signature was also forged by the perpetrators.
The witness disclosed that five CBN officials approved the internal memo that sanctioned the release of the funds and that none of them are facing trial alongside Emefiele, having only been suspended by the CBN.
The witness stated that he was not responsible for taking Emefiele’s extrajudicial statements.
When queried if any of the investigators determined that Emefiele received any funds, he noted that Emefiele’s lawyer, Ifeanyi Omeke, had indicated he received funds on behalf of Emefiele, but that he had not interviewed Emefiele about the claim.
Previously, Emefiele’s attorney expressed discontent over summoning another Investigating Police Officer (IPO), asserting that the witness would merely repeat what had been said by two other IPOs.
He also brought to the court’s attention the recent proceedings, where the EFCC indicated it intended to present its last witness.
“We comprehend their strategy. It appears they are trivializing the court. Nevertheless, we are prepared to proceed.”
Emefiele, through his attorney, requested the termination of the EFCC’s case after prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, stated that he was uncertain about presenting two witnesses on April 28.
Oyedepo informed the court that the EFCC had yet to secure the subpoena from the court and that the witnesses were outside the jurisdiction in Benin and Lagos.
When the court queried the prosecution about how many more witnesses it intended to call, Oyedepo responded that two more were planned, naming them as Jim Obessa and CP Eloho Okpozikbo.
The court then directed the prosecution to present all witnesses between April 27 and 28.
At this juncture, Burkaa petitioned the court that the EFCC’s case should be dismissed if it failed to bring the two remaining witnesses to court on April 28.
“If the witnesses do not appear on April 28, we request that they be barred from the case. Justice is owed to both the prosecution and the defendant.
“This is a maneuver by the prosecution to impose maximum hardship on the defendant. Please note for the record that the prosecution has repeatedly presented this situation,” he asserted.
In response, Oyedepo assured the court that he was not there to hinder the swift progression of the case and urged the court to deny the application to obstruct the prosecution.
Justice Hamza Muazu advised both parties to hold their arguments for their final statements and instructed Oyedepo to approach the court registrar regarding the signing of the subpoena.
Justice Muazu then adjourned the case until April 28 for continuation of the trial.
