According to reports from Channels Television, the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, is likely to face charges of illegal possession of a gun and live ammunition. The trial is scheduled to take place in Lagos next week. The Department of State Services (DSS) had previously announced that Emefiele was charged to court, but did not disclose specific details of the charges.
In a separate development, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Apo, Abuja, declared Emefiele’s arrest and detention as void. This ruling followed a previous order from the FCT High Court in Maitama, Abuja, which had instructed the DSS to either charge Emefiele to court within seven days or release him.
As per the Channels TV report, Emefiele is expected to face two charges related to possessing a single-barrel shotgun without a license, which is an offense under Section 4 of the Firearms Act, and possessing 123 rounds of live ammunition without a license. The alleged offenses took place on or about June 15, 2023, at a specific location in Ikoyi, Lagos.
Emefiele was arrested on June 10, 2023, the day after his suspension by President Bola Tinubu. The DSS spokesperson, Dr. Peter Afunanya, stated that the decision to charge Emefiele was in compliance with a court order. Earlier, the DSS had attempted to arrest Emefiele based on allegations of terrorism financing and other economic crimes, but a Federal High Court in Maitama issued an order restraining the agency from arresting him.
In the meantime, the Apo Abuja FCT High Court declared that Emefiele’s arrest, detention, and interrogation violated a subsisting judgment and orders of another court. The court granted Emefiele’s request to set aside any warrant of arrest obtained or procured by the respondents, particularly the DSS, and ordered his immediate release. The court also issued an injunction restraining the respondents from further detaining or taking steps against Emefiele in connection with any allegations mentioned.
Emefiele had filed an Originating Motion on Notice against various entities, seeking the court’s intervention to invalidate his arrest and detention, considering the judgment delivered by Justice M. A. Hassan on December 29, 2022.
