Nigeria charged suspended Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele shortly after a court in the West African nation ruled that he should be prosecuted or freed.
Emefiele was arrested last month “on the strength of suspected fresh criminal infractions,” one of which “forms the basis for his current prosecution,” the State Security Service said in a statement on Thursday. The charges were filed in compliance with an order issued by a court in the capital, Abuja, earlier the same day, the SSS said.
Emefiele’s lawyer, Joseph Daudu, said it would be premature to comment because he has not seen the charges.
Emefiele has been in the custody of the SSS – which is similar to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation – since June 10, just hours after he was removed from his post by President Bola Tinubu.
Read More: Nigerian Court Orders Central Bank Governor Charged or Freed (1)
The suspended governor, whose tenure is scheduled to end in June 2024, said he is a victim of “a political witch-hunt,” according to his bail application filed on June 13. Former President Muhammadu Buhari, who handed power over to Tinubu in late May, was “eminently satisfied with the monetary policies” pursued by Emefiele, it said.
The SSS is probing allegations including whether Emefiele breached national security rules, committed economic sabotage and misappropriated public funds, the agency said in an affidavit filed on June 20. The organization unsuccessfully sought an arrest warrant for the central bank governor from a court in December.
Read More: Secret Police Probe Nigerian Central Bank Boss Amid Standoff
(Updates with comment from Emefiele’s lawyer in paragraph three and information on investigation in sixth paragraph)
