Neither former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele nor his wife Margaret were signatories to the accounts used to funnel millions of naira from the apex bank, an Ikeja Special Offences Court heard yesterday. Assistant Manager Mrs. Ifeoma Ogbonnaya of a second-generation bank testified that the funds were moved to accounts belonging to companies such as Limelight Multidimensional Limited, Come Support Services Limited, Ambswin Resources Limited, and Magofarm.
Mrs. Ogbonnaya, the fifth prosecution witness, testified under cross-examination by Olalekan Ojo (SAN), counsel to Emefiele, who faces charges of abuse of office and misallocation of $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion. Ogbonnaya named one Mrs. Augustina as the signatory to the accounts but asserted that transactions required approval from Mrs. Emefiele, who communicated instructions via phone calls, WhatsApp chats, and emails.
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Despite Mrs. Emefiele's involvement, Ogbonnaya confirmed that neither Godwin nor Margaret Emefiele were listed as shareholders or signatories to the corporate accounts. She explained that the bank's Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols were followed, and there was no evidence in the account opening documents linking the Emefieles directly to the corporate accounts.
The defense requested access to WhatsApp chats between Ogbonnaya and Mrs. Emefiele, which was initially opposed by the prosecution. The trial judge ordered the prosecution to print the chat records and present them at the next hearing. Further trial proceedings were adjourned until October 28 by Justice Rahman Oshodi.
