Emefiele Arraigned on N7.8bn Fraud, 753 Housing Units Allegations; Granted N2bn Bail

Abuja, Nigeria -Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele, the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), was today arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before Justice Yusuf Halilu of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on an eight-count charge. The charges, totaling N7,831,002,396 (Seven Billion, Eight Hundred and Thirty-One Million, Two Thousand, Three Hundred and Ninety-Six Naira), border on criminal breach of trust, conspiracy, forgery, and unlawful possession of property suspected to be proceeds of crime, including a sprawling estate of 753 housing units.

Emefiele, who is already facing other trials, pleaded not guilty to all charges. The EFCC alleges that he leveraged his privileged position to unlawfully acquire numerous properties and control substantial sums of money believed to be derived from illicit activities.

One of the charges, Count One, states that Emefiele, alongside Eric Ocheme (who is currently at large), “knowingly had under your control a property lying and being situate at Plot 109, Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, FCT, Abuja, measuring 150,462.86 square meters with appurtenances, which property is reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained.” This alleged offense is contrary to and punishable under Section 319 (A) of the Penal Code Law, Cap. 89 Laws of the Federation, 1990, which deals with knowingly having control of unlawfully obtained property.

Another significant charge, Count Four, accuses Emefiele and Ocheme of knowingly having control of N2,945,331,050 (Two Billion, Nine Hundred and Forty-Five Million, Three Hundred and Thirty-One Thousand, Fifty Naira) domiciled in a Zenith Bank Plc account belonging to Kelvito Integrated Services, between January and December 2021, with the sum being “reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained.” Further investigation reveals that the EFCC has also accused Emefiele of controlling other large sums of money in proxy accounts, amounting to a total of N7.8 billion across various accounts and years.

Following Emefiele’s not-guilty plea, Prosecution counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, urged the court to proceed to an accelerated trial, citing Section 19 of the EFCC Act. He also requested that the defendant be remanded in a Correctional Centre pending trial.

However, Defence counsel Mathew Burka, SAN, presented a pending bail application filed on June 13, 2025. He emphasized that Emefiele had a history of adhering to bail terms granted in other cases and consistently presented himself to authorities, thus not posing a flight risk.

Justice Halilu, in his ruling, granted Emefiele bail with stringent conditions. The judge noted that bail is a constitutional right and that there was no evidence of Emefiele previously jumping bail. The conditions for bail include:

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* Two sureties with verifiable landed properties located in prime Abuja areas such as Maitama, Asokoro, Wuse II, or Life Camp, each valued at not less than N2 billion.

* The sureties must provide undertakings to guarantee Emefiele’s appearance in court, failing which their properties would be forfeited to the Federal Government, and they would face remand.

* Emefiele must also deposit his travel documents with the court.

Despite a plea for interim bail to allow Emefiele to perfect his bail conditions, Justice Halilu declined, stating that the defendant has until Wednesday, June 18, 2025, to meet the conditions, or he will be remanded in a Correctional Centre. “In this court, I do not do handovers. The defendant has from today to Wednesday to perfect his bail or be remanded in prison,” the judge stated firmly.

The case has been adjourned to July 11, 2025, for the commencement of trial. This arraignment marks another significant development in the ongoing legal battles faced by the former CBN Governor since his removal from office in 2023.