Posted by On Thursday, Justice Hamza Muazu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja proceeded to hear arguments in the trial of Godwin Emefiele, who was once the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The 20-count amended accusations against Emefiele include conspiracies, forgery, criminal breach of trust, corrupt advantages, and gaining under false pretenses amounting to $6,230,000. He is standing trial before Justice Muazu.
A forensic expert verified at the rescheduled hearing that the $6. 2 million request for international election observers was based on a fake paper.
In court, Bamaiyi Meriga, a witness summoned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), testified that forensic examination of the contested documents had revealed obvious proof of signature forgery, and that the execution seal was distinct from the original.
Former president Muhammadu Buhari and former secretary to the federal government Boss Mustapha’s signatures were not, he added.
Justice Muazu, the trial judge, admitted two documents into evidence, one of which was a presidential directive about foreign observers.
During Emefiele’s counsel’s cross-examination, the witness denied being an employee of the EFCC and claimed that the Nigeria Immigration Service, not the anti-graft agency, was paying him.
Matthew Burkaa, who is representing Emefiele in court, was critical of the witness’s behavior and said that the witness had deceived the court by dodging questions.
But Rotimi Oyedepo, the prosecution’s counsel, was unhappy with the defense’s assertions.
Proceedings in the trial will resume on March 11.