Court orders immediate release of Emefiele

Court declares the arrest and ongoing detention of the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele by the Department of State Services (DSS) as invalid.

This ruling comes one day after a Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja ordered Emefiele’s release.

Emefiele had sought the court’s intervention against several parties, including the Forum for Accountability and Good Leadership, the Attorney General of the Federation, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Inspector General of Police, the State Security Service, and the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Justice Kawu concluded that Emefiele’s arrest and detention were in violation of a previous ruling made by Justice M. A. Hassan. Emefiele’s lawyer, Peter Abang, urged the court to invalidate his client’s arrest and detention, asserting that it disregarded Justice Hassan’s ruling issued on December 29, 2022.

Justice Bello Kawu concurred that the arrest and detention were contrary to Justice Hassan’s standing order. The court also invalidated any arrest warrant obtained by the DSS and ordered Emefiele’s immediate release from custody.

In response to the ruling, Emefiele’s legal counsel commended the bravery of Nigerian judges and urged the DSS to promptly comply with the court order. He emphasized that Emefiele’s health had deteriorated during his one-month detention and insisted that he should be allowed to attend to it.