BREAKING : Court Grants Suspended CBN Gov. Emefiele Bail | READ FULL DETAILS
A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi Lagos State on Tuesday, granted bail to the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.
Justice Nicholas Oweibo granted Emefiele bail to the tune of twenty million naira with one surety in like sum.
The court also ordered that he be remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre, pending the perfection of his bail.
Justice Oweibo granted bail to Emefiele who has been in DSS custody for six weeks, after listening to the submissions of Emefiele’s counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN).
The judge rejected the Federal Government’s claim that Emefiele was a flight risk.
He ruled that the government failed to provide any fact to support its claim.
ALL FACTS NEWSPAPER (AFNEWS) had earlier reported that Emefiele pleaded “not guilty” to the two counts of illegal possession of firearm and ammunition filed against him by the Federal Government.
Earlier in his submissions, Emefiele’s lawyer, Daudu, urged the court to grant his client bail on self recognizance or on other liberal terms, pending the hearing and determination of the trial.
He said, “There is no counter affidavit from the Federal Government opposing bail. Also, the defendant is a renowned banker and can only stay at his house, he can’t travel anywhere.”
However, counsel for the Federal Government, Nkiru Jones-Nebo, in an oral submission, opposed the bail application, insisting that the prosecution had not been given time to respond in line with the provisions of fair hearing enshrined in the constitution.
She also said that the prosecution had information that the defendant’s refusal to hand in his passport suggested his capacity to evade and abscond from his trial.
“As the Governor of the CBN, he is a powerful man, and can intimidate the witnesses. Granting him bail will intimidate the prosecution witnesses who have come forward to give evidence. He can evade trial based on his antecedents. We urge the court to dismiss the bail application,” she argued.
But the court overruled the Federal Government.
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