Emefiele to be arraigned Tuesday over ‘unlawful possession of firearms’

A federal high court sitting in Lagos has fixed July 25 for the arraignment of the ousted governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.

The Informant247 gathered that the hearing notices have been sent out by the court to counsels involved in the matter, whereby Joseph Daudu, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), will be leading the defendant’s case while Nicholas Oweibo will serve as the presiding judge.

It could be recalled that president Bola Ahmed Tinubu on June 9, suspended Emefiele, asking him to transfer his responsibilities to Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi, CBN deputy governor, operations directorate.

Meanwhile, a day after, the Department of State Services (DSS) announced that Emefiele was in its custody for “some investigative reasons”.

The suspended CBN governor has been in DSS custody since his arrest.

However, on July 13, spokesperson of the DSS, Peter Afunanya, confirmed that the agency had filed charges against Emefiele, with two counts bordering on alleged possession of firearms.

In the first count, Emefiele is accused of possessing a single-barrel shotgun (JOJEFF MAGNUM 8371) without a licence, which is contrary to Section 4 of the Firearms Act, and punishable under Section 27 (1b) of the same Act.

In the second count, the suspended CBN governor is accused of having in his possession 123 rounds of live ammunition (cartridges) without a licence, which is contrary to Section 8 of the Firearms Act and punishable under Section 27 (1)(b)(il) of the same Act.

Emefiele, who had earlier filed an application before the court seeking bail on self-recognisance, argued that the charges for which he was accused are bailable, adding that he has never been convicted of a crime and should enjoy the presumption of innocence until proven guilty, adding that he is not a flight risk.