Fidelia Soriwei, Abuja
A prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, on Friday told the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja that an alleged fraudulent withdrawal of $6.23 million from the apex bank led to a negative balance of N2.858 billion in a CBN dollar account used for internal staff and Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
The witness, Jim Obazee, who appeared as the 15th prosecution witness, testified before Justice Hamza Muazu during proceedings in the case filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Emefiele is facing a 20-count amended charge bordering on alleged conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, forgery, obtaining by false pretences and conferment of corrupt advantages involving $6.23 million.
Led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), Obazee said the funds were withdrawn from the CBN’s Abuja branch on February 3, 2023, without the required naira cover for dollar transactions, a situation he said pushed the account into a deficit of N2,858,150,196.42.
According to him, the transaction should have triggered internal scrutiny by the bank’s management and accounting officers.
He further told the court that the money left the bank without proper documentation identifying the recipient and was not reflected in records relating to the purported beneficiaries.
“The money was actually taken, but did not flow to the supposed beneficiaries,” he said.
Obazee, who headed a special investigative team that examined the affairs of the CBN and related entities, said investigators found no evidence that any foreign election observer mission received the funds allegedly earmarked for election observer logistics ahead of the 2023 general election.
He also testified that a letter from former President Muhammadu Buhari authorised the release of funds for election observer logistics, while a subsequent communication from former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, introduced Jibril Abubakar as the person designated to collect the money.
He added that a further authorisation from a CBN director approved the release of the funds.
The witness told the court that part of the money had been recovered from one Bashir Maishanu, who allegedly returned $856,500 to investigators. He added that several officials interviewed during the probe denied involvement in or knowledge of the transaction.
During cross-examination by defence counsel, Matthew Burkaa (SAN), Obazee confirmed that criminal charges had already been filed against Emefiele before his investigative assignment commenced. He also stated that Emefiele was interviewed while in custody at the Kuje Correctional Centre.
Justice Muazu, in a ruling during the proceedings, held that the witness could not authenticate signatures on documents tendered before the court because he was not a forensic document examiner.
The matter was adjourned until October 20, 2026, for the adoption of final written addresses. Defence counsel indicated that he intends to file a no-case submission on behalf of the former CBN governor.
