The High Court sitting in Abuja, presided over by Justice O. Adeniji, on Thursday, ordered the immediate and unconditional release of the immediate past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, from the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The order was issued by the judge after Emefiele’s legal team filed an ex parte motion before him.
Listed as defendants in the suit marked FCT/HC/CV/040/2023/M/122/2023 are the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Attorney General of the Federation, the EFCC, and its chairman, Ola Olukoyede.
In his ruling, Justice Adeniji stated that “the third and fourth respondents are hereby ordered to unconditionally release the applicant from detention forthwith or, in the alternative, produce him in court on the date fixed for hearing of the substantive motion on notice for purposes of being admitted to bail by the court.
“It is hereby further ordered that the motion on notice shall be heard on November 11, 2023. The instant order, together with the motion on notice, shall be served on the respondents on Thursday, November 2, 2023.”
Chronicle NG reports that the EFCC arrested Emefiele on October 27 immediately after he was released from the custody of the Department of State Services, where he had been kept since June 10.
The embattled ex-CBN boss was arrested by the DSS in June, shortly after President Bola Tinubu ordered his suspension.
