EFCC WITNESS TESTIFIES: EMEFIELE’S AIDE ALLEGEDLY COLLECTED $17.1M IN CASH FROM BUSINESSMAN OVER THREE YEARS

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By Aishat Momoh. O.

A lead investigator with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Alvan Gurumnaan, has testified that a personal aide to former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, allegedly collected a staggering \$17.1 million in cash from a businessman over a three-year period on behalf of the embattled banker.

Gurumnaan, an Assistant Commander with the EFCC and head of a special operations team, disclosed this on Tuesday before Justice Rahmon Oshodi of the Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja. Emefiele is currently standing trial alongside one Herry Omoile on charges of abuse of office, corruption, accepting gifts through agents, and fraudulent property dealings amounting to \$4.5 billion and ₦2.8 billion.

The EFCC witness told the court that the investigation, which began while Emefiele was still in office, was based on multiple intelligence reports alleging serious misconduct, including procurement fraud, gratification, and living beyond legitimate means. His team conducted extensive enquiries across several CBN departments including trade and exchange, legal, human resources, and banking supervision and summoned multiple bank officials for questioning.

According to Gurumnaan, one name that consistently emerged during the probe was Eric Odoh, a personal assistant to Emefiele, who has now been placed on an international watch list after evading all efforts to bring him in for questioning. Another aide, Monday Osazuwa, provided key testimony during the investigation.

Osazuwa reportedly told investigators that Emefiele, while outside Lagos, once instructed him to contact a specific businessman. After initiating the call, Osazuwa said he met the businessman at a Victoria Island address, where he was handed a cash sum in U.S. dollars, which he later passed on to the former CBN governor. Osazuwa claimed this became a routine, with multiple meetings between September 2020 and June 2, 2023, just days before Emefiele’s suspension.

Osazuwa also alleged that some of the money was delivered to the second defendant, Herry Omoile, who in turn passed it to Emefiele, while at other times, the former CBN chief received the funds directly, typically on Fridays after work. Gurumnaan added that Emefiele would confirm receipt of the money via phone calls to the businessman.

The EFCC investigator further revealed that the businessman corroborated the aide’s account, admitting to giving a total of $17.1 million to Emefiele’s representatives. WhatsApp messages retrieved from the businessman’s phone, printed out and tendered in court were accepted into evidence after no objection from Emefiele’s lead counsel, Olalekan Ojo (SAN).

However, counsel for the second defendant, Yinka Kotoye (SAN), reserved his right to challenge the documents during final arguments.

Both defence teams requested to conduct an independent forensic analysis of the WhatsApp messages, which the court granted on the condition of a formal application.

The matter was adjourned for continuation of the EFCC operative’s testimony until October 7, 2025.