Justice Nicholas Oweibo of the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court has granted a bail of N20 million to Godwin Emefiele, the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.
Emefiele was arraigned in court on Tuesday on a two-count charge bordering on illegal possession of firearms.
In the first count, he is accused of possessing a single-barrel shotgun (JOJEFF MAGNUM 8371) without a licence, which is contrary to section 4 of the Firearms Act and punishable under section 27 (1b) of the same Act.
In the second count, the suspended CBN governor is accused of having 23 rounds of live ammunition (cartridges) without a licence, which is contrary to section 8 of the Firearms Act and punishable under section 27 (1)(b)(ii) of the same Act.
The charges were filed against him in court by the Federal Government.
Emefiele, who has been in the custody of the Department of State Services, DSS, since June 10, 2023, a day after he was suspended as the CBN governor, pleaded “not guilty” to the charges.
After listening to the submissions of Emefiele’s counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN), Justice Oweibo granted the former CBN governor bail.
The Judge dismissed the argument of the counsel for the Federal Government, Nkiru Jones-Nebo who opposed the bail application.
In his ruling on the bail application, Justice Oweibo said, “I find and hold that the prosecution has failed to establish why the defendant should not be granted bail.
“Consequently the defendant is admitted to bail in the sum of N20 million with one surety in like sum. The surety must be the owner of a landed property within the jurisdiction of the court who must not be less than Level 16 in the Nigerian Civil Service.”
The court also ruled that Emefiele must deposit his international passport to the court, and fixed the trial for November 14, 2023.
The presiding judge, thereafter, ordered that Emefiele be held at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre, pending the perfection of his bail as against the request of the prosecution that he should be remanded in DSS custody for further investigation on another matter that may soon be filed in court.
But the DSS officers insisted on taking away the suspended CBN governor into their custody which led to a physical fight with the prison officials outside the court premises. In the end, the DSS rearrested Emefiele.
