Emefiele accused of using associates to buy expensive properties - Witness

A witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Thursday told the Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja that former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele used associates to buy properties worth billions of naira while he was in office.

The witness, Alvan Gurumnaan, said investigators found several properties linked to Mr Emefiele. He stated that some of his associates got money and bought assets for him.

Mr Emefiele is on trial alongside his co-defendant, Henry Omoile, facing 22 charges.

Nineteen of these charges focus on Mr Emefiele, including receiving bribes, corrupt demands, and abuse of office. These charges involve transactions worth $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion. The other three charges against Mr Omoile involve unlawful acceptance of gifts.

While testifying before trial judge Rahman Oshodi, Mr Gurumnaan explained that Mr Emefiele’s statement was recorded during an investigation by a special operations team he led. He claimed that the former CBN governor, who faces additional charges in Abuja related to his time in office, created a system that made it hard for businesses and regular Nigerians to get foreign exchange. This forced some people to make special arrangements.

The witness mentioned a company that allegedly paid millions of dollars through Mr Emefiele’s staff member, Monday Osazuwa. “Osazuwa admitted to us during the investigation that he received about $17 million from the company and gave it to the second defendant at some point,” he said.

Mr Gurumnaan pointed out that Mr Omoile later delivered the money to Mr Emefiele. He also alleged that the managing director of Source Computer had to pay money to Mr Emefiele before the company could get payment for its contract.

Properties linked to Emefiele

Mr Gurumnaan identified several properties that the EFCC traced to the former CBN governor through associates. One of these was a lawyer, Ifeanyi Omeke, from whose office investigators reportedly recovered more than $2 million in cash.

The witness said Mr Omeke, who was secretary to several companies, admitted to acting as a front for Mr Emefiele. Some of the properties listed included twin duplexes in Lekki Phase 1 and two mansions on Queens Drive, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Mr Gurumnaan also told the court that Mr Emefiele had a factory being built in his hometown, Agbor, Delta State, which has been forfeited to the federal government. He further claimed that Mr Emefiele bought a property on Adekunle Lawal Street, Ikoyi, from the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company, where he had served as board chairman, and later sold it to himself.

This property consists of a block of eight flats and has also been forfeited to the government, the witness said. He added that investigators found a warehouse that allegedly belongs to Mr Emefiele in Ogun State near Lagos. The warehouse had several containers with contents worth hundreds of billions of naira.

Mr Gurumnaan also mentioned an 11-storey building under construction, which has about 94 luxury flats, and an estate of around 750 houses in the Lokogoma area of Abuja as properties allegedly owned by Mr Emefiele.

Previous forfeiture proceedings

Some properties mentioned in court on Thursday had come up in earlier EFCC investigations and forfeiture proceedings. In February 2025, the Federal High Court in Lagos ordered the final forfeiture of $4.7 million, N830 million, and several properties linked to Mr Emefiele to the federal government.

These included an 11-storey building with 94 apartments under construction in Ikoyi, an office building in Lekki, industrial parks, and warehouses in Lagos. The Ikoyi building matches the description of the 94-apartment property discussed by the EFCC investigator on Thursday.

The Lokogoma estate was also part of a separate case. In 2025, the EFCC charged Mr Emefiele with acquiring 753 housing units in the Abuja district alongside an alleged accomplice, Eric Ocheme, while he was CBN governor. A court later ordered the estate’s final forfeiture to the federal government.

Defence objects

During Thursday’s proceedings, Mr Emefiele’s lawyer, Ojo Olalekan, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), and Mr Omoile’s lawyer, Kazeem Gbadamosi, objected to the investigator’s testimony about the properties. They argued that the evidence was not relevant to the charges in court.

Mr Oshodi overruled the objection, saying the defence could challenge the witness during cross-examination. Mr Gurumnaan then told the court that Mr Emefiele had a chance to respond to some findings during the investigation but did not address the allegations.

The judge then adjourned the case until 13 November for the trial to continue.