Court Dismisses Emefiele’s Jurisdiction Challenge in $4.5bn and N2.8bn Fraud Case

The Lagos State Special Offences Court has ruled against former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele’s attempt to challenge the court’s jurisdiction in the fraud case involving $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion.

On Wednesday, Justice Rahman Oshodi confirmed that the court had the authority to try Emefiele and his co-defendant, Henry Omoile, on the charges brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

However, four of the 26 charges were dismissed for lack of jurisdiction, particularly those related to the “allocation of foreign exchange without reason,” which was not defined as an offense in Nigerian law.

Despite these dismissals, the judge ruled that the court had sufficient jurisdiction over counts 8 to 26, rejecting the defense’s territorial challenge.

The case will proceed with the continuation of trial scheduled for February 24, 2025. Emefiele’s legal team had argued that the offenses fell outside the jurisdiction of the Lagos court, but the EFCC countered, asserting that Lagos was the proper venue based on the nature of the crimes and supporting evidence.