Former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, was arraigned in court on Friday, facing 20 counts of alleged corruption and forgery.
However, Emefiele pleaded not guilty, signalling the beginning of a trial, scheduled for February 12th and 13th, at the Federal High Court, in Abuja.
Recall that Emefiele was initially arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on six counts relating to N1.2 billion procurement allegations.
…
The charges were later amended to the current 20 counts.
The development followed Thursday’s revelation that the Federal Government has filed an amended 20 counts against the embattled former CBN helmsman at the High Court of the FCT.
Justice Hamza Muazu of the FCT High Court had previously granted Emefiele leave on Thursday to travel within the FCT but not outside the country.
Emefiele then met the conditions of his N300 million bail.
The fresh charges filed by the EFCC include: forgery, conferring a corrupt advantage, and criminal breach of trust.
The charges alleged that Emefiele, in 2019, used his position as the CBN Governor to confer a corrupt advantage on Sa’adatu Ramallan Yaro, a CBN staff member, by awarding contracts to April 1616 Investment Ltd, a company where Yaro serves as a Director.
